Make sure she understands what a startup means, and that it's a serious endeavor. No one wants to be pushed aside for someone's hobby. That said, your relatio

Make sure she understands what a startup means, and that it's a serious endeavor. No one wants to be pushed aside for someone's hobby. That said, your relationship probably has to be serious too. Sometimes you're not going to have time for her. She has to understand that you can still be "working" even though your day job ended four hours ago. Don't keep her in the dark. Show her the things you're working on. If she starts snoring don't assume it's because she isn't your audience: maybe what you're doing is genuinely boring. Start joking about the things you'll buy when you're millionaires. I'm in a serious relationship. I haven't started a startup yet. But the same issues have come up as I learn how to hack. *I'm still looking for a hacker friend in Kansas City (are you one? dgouch at gmail.com)