Entertainment Movies Blake Lively Reveals the 'Rule' She and Husband Ryan Reynolds Agreed on When They Started Dating The acting duo made a pact to "not to work at the same time" at the start of their romance in 2011 By Brenton Blanchet Brenton Blanchet Brenton Blanchet is a writer-reporter at PEOPLE. He has been working at PEOPLE since 2022. Brenton's work has previously appeared in Billboard, Pigeons & Planes and Complex. People Editorial Guidelines Published on February 25, 2024 11:28AM EST Close Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds at the Adam Project World Premiere at Alice Tully Hall on February 28, 2022 . Photo: Noam Galai/Getty Images Blake Lively is detailing how important a work-life balance was for her and Ryan Reynolds at the start of their relationship. The 36-year-old Gossip Girl alum revealed on Amber Tamblyn's Substack show Further Ado, per Entertainment Tonight, that she and her now-husband made a pact to prioritize their relationship over work early on. "When Ryan and I got together, we made a rule not to work at the same time," Lively said. "So that we could always prioritize our personal life." "That takes working really hard when we're not," Lively added. "Just like financial planning and sustaining that — it takes balance." Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively's Relationship Timeline Lively and the 47-year-old Deadpool & Wolverine star began dating in 2011, and later got married in 2012. The pair share four children — James, 9, Inez, 7, Betty, 4, and a 1-year-old baby. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Lively later shared that she was "used to working hard and going and going and going and going and not stopping." "Especially, Gossip Girl was six years of my life, and we were sometimes shooting three episodes at once," she explained. Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds attend the premiere of "Pokemon Detective Pikachu". Steven Ferdman/Getty Blake Lively Wore Deadpool & Wolverine Friendship Bracelet to Honor Ryan Reynolds at the 2024 Super Bowl As for how the duo approach parenthood on top of their work schedules, Reynolds opened up to PEOPLE back in October about how he and Lively stress the importance of “self-awareness” to their four children. “I think it’s more about talking to them about everything,” the actor said. “It’s genuine when I say I take a huge interest in their days and how things are going.” “For me, the best time of my day is walking them to school and walking them back,” he added. “I think as parents, we are so much better equipped to handle the rigors of childhood through our kids now than when I was a kid. It’s just totally different now. People are much more self-aware. And that’s the thing we sort of hang our hat on the most is self-awareness with our kids. Not be happy, not be anything, just be self-aware and welcome everything in.”