You write: "Because your comment reeks of "startup romanticism", not startup practice." Surely you realize that I could make the same kind of assertion about

You write: "Because your comment reeks of "startup romanticism", not startup practice." Surely you realize that I could make the same kind of assertion about what you have written? I could write: "You comment reeks of sentimental notions about family life, not the actual reality of family life." If you want to argue that all people, everywhere, enjoy their families then you are simply in denial of reality. If you want to deny the fact that some people are deeply bitter about the sacrifices they have made for their children, then you are simply running away from the truth. As for the startup romanticism that you mention, I've been working with startups since 2002, which is long enough to have some idea about what habits work over the long term, and what habits do not work over the long term. From what I've seen, it is a bad idea to have a child during the first 2 or 3 years of a startup. You can have kids before then, or after then, but not right during the most intense phase of the startup.