4 ms·

A lot of people in in the comments seems to assume you'll get married. Which, while I wish you luck, may not be the case. With that said, while I can't speak f

by throwaway2016a 9y ago

A lot of people in in the comments seems to assume you'll get married. Which, while I wish you luck, may not be the case. With that said, while I can't speak from experience, if you are equal founders I say go for it. If one of you is in a position of authority over the other it becomes much more tricky. The only down side I can see is if you two break up and it gets messy. In which case, having a good board of directors that can be neutral and think about what is best for the company is important. Edit: a little bit from personal experience though. If your startup hits a rough place and you need to sacrifice things like pay, it can be helpful when your significant other has a stable job. And if you both work for the same startup that is not an option. Money is what breaks up most relationships and if there is one thing startups are good at, it is creating money problems.

grwthckrmstr 9y ago
Alternatively, cultivate a relationship that ascends beyond money. That's something worth cultivating?
- xiphias 9y ago
  Like not eating and living under a bridge?
- throwaway2016a 9y ago
  The reason money ends relationships is because severe lack of money creates tremendous stress. Overdue bills, not being unable to put food on the table, losing your house, ruining your credit score, not being able to afford your kid's college, not being able to afford medical care, etc. Not to mention it helps cause or bring out depression. Which is a crippling mental condition that requires a lot of awareness and fortitude on behalf of the people around you (aka your significant other). The kind of stuff people often commit suicide over. In fact, I'm shocked the suicide rate in startup founder's isn't higher. Never mind the divorce rate. Now you can argue up and down that "all you need" to whether those things in life and a relationship is "strength." But not everyone can be strong all the time. And it is even harder to be strong when, for example, one partner is the cause of most of the money troubles and you know leaving them would solve the problem for you. At some point the basic human instinct of self-preservation comes in.
muzani 9y ago
I would say that it would be dangerous to not want to get married to a cofounder. The company will bind the couple together, at least until acquisition. A romantic/sexual fling can end very, very poorly, and such problems can carry over into the startup. Would someone be happy if he felt she used her and then dumped him for the next guy? If a cofounder marries some other guy later, would her husband be happy that she still sees her ex every day at the office? At least with office romances, someone can change jobs if it gets too awkward.

grwthckrmstr 9y ago

Alternatively, cultivate a relationship that ascends beyond money. That's something worth cultivating?

xiphias 9y ago
Like not eating and living under a bridge?
throwaway2016a 9y ago
The reason money ends relationships is because severe lack of money creates tremendous stress. Overdue bills, not being unable to put food on the table, losing your house, ruining your credit score, not being able to afford your kid's college, not being able to afford medical care, etc. Not to mention it helps cause or bring out depression. Which is a crippling mental condition that requires a lot of awareness and fortitude on behalf of the people around you (aka your significant other). The kind of stuff people often commit suicide over. In fact, I'm shocked the suicide rate in startup founder's isn't higher. Never mind the divorce rate. Now you can argue up and down that "all you need" to whether those things in life and a relationship is "strength." But not everyone can be strong all the time. And it is even harder to be strong when, for example, one partner is the cause of most of the money troubles and you know leaving them would solve the problem for you. At some point the basic human instinct of self-preservation comes in.

muzani 9y ago

I would say that it would be dangerous to not want to get married to a cofounder. The company will bind the couple together, at least until acquisition. A romantic/sexual fling can end very, very poorly, and such problems can carry over into the startup. Would someone be happy if he felt she used her and then dumped him for the next guy? If a cofounder marries some other guy later, would her husband be happy that she still sees her ex every day at the office? At least with office romances, someone can change jobs if it gets too awkward.