Entrepreneurship & Family: Putting $ into the Business
My wife sure loves me a lot. She must because she has invested a lot of money in me over the past couple of years.
One of the ways that entrepreneurial dreams affect the family is that a lot of the money that you have in savings will usually go towards the business. A wife will usually sacrifice their thirst for shopping, their comfort of a savings account, and their desire to get their own home so that your company can be successful. At least that has happened in our household.
So far, we’ve…
- Pulled money (not hundreds, but thousands) out of what used to be called our “savings account”
- Taken gifts and loans from close friends & family (thank you, thank you, thank you)
- Used money that we had received for student loans (not sure if I really should admit that)
- Pushed off buying a home (my parents were on an LDS mission for 18 months — so they asked us to take care of their home). Even though I was making a 1 hr + commute, it was worth it for the FREE rent.
- Taken reduced salary — 1/2 of my “salary” was going to pay back loans each month
There is more… but you get the idea.
I’ll be making this point alot… but usually the spouse of the entrepreneur is the one that is making most of the sacrifices. I honestly love what I do. I have confidence that our team can build a successful company and that the sacrifices will be worth it in the end.
My wife, on the other hand, can only stand on the sidelines and hope that we are successful. She usually only sees/hears about the “high highs and the low lows.” Some days, she must be thinking, “what is Brock getting himself in to?!” because she sees me worry about the company and our employees and she knows that I’ve chosen this path over others.
Most of us entrepreneurs call this “skin in the game” — while the rest of the world calls it insanity. Despite it all, I love what I do. I wouldn’t trade it for the world… and I’m in deed grateful to my wife for her patience and encouragement…. and MONEY! 
Entrepreneurs: if you are planning to become an entrepreneur… make sure that you have a supportive spouse.
Brock, this is a great post. I started my own business last year and the ONLY reason why I can do what I do is because of my supportive wife and kids. There are sacrifices that they make that have to be harder because, like you point out, they are on the sidelines (which means we have the responsibility to ensure we share the wins with them as much as we can)!
Jason Alba - CEO - JibberJobber.com
Brock,
Your post was comforting to read. It’s nice to know there are others who have “stressed” their willing wives a bit. One thing my wife did that has helped us is to “draw a line in the sand” as to how much we would put into the business. It caused us to get more serious about bootstrapping instead of just reaching into the bank account again and again.
And thanks for Funding Universe. I’m a neophyte on much of this stuff and the education is well worth the tuition.
Tim Carver
President
Families in Zion
Touching Hearts and Homes
Mr. Blake, it is truely resounding to see the differences between those who “are” and those who wish to be Entrepreneurs. It sure does take a great Woman behind us men who chose this difficult yet rewarding path. ust found your Blog, really enjoy it.