An Investor Doubted Me and My Business Because I'm a Working Dad — Here's Why You Don't Have to Sacrifice Work or Your Family.

I've ne'er believed successful the Silicon Valley thought that you've sewage to activity 24/7 and sacrifice everything to build a successful company. For me, building a business and raising a family spell manus successful hand. These contrasting views are possibly champion illustrated pinch a individual anecdote.

Long ago, erstwhile a erstwhile business partner and I were raising our A information for a institution we'd founded, I recovered myself sitting crossed immoderate investors from Silicon Valley. I knew they wouldn't person flown retired to meet america unless they were reasonably superior astir investing — they weren't the type of group to discarded clip and money connected thing they didn't judge in.

My woman Rachel and I had precocious learned that Rachel was pregnant pinch twins. The gestation wasn't planned, which meant that we'd gone from reasoning we were going to person zero much kids to observe we were really having 2 astatine erstwhile successful the blink of an eye. I was astir to go the proud begetter of not 4 but six highly energetic daughters.

To break the ice, my co-founder shared the supra pinch our would-be investors. In astir cases, spicing up generic mini talk pinch a communicative astir unexpected twins is astatine slightest entertaining. But the investors weren't amused.

The elder investor — I'll ne'er hide his name, moreover though I won't mention it present — was arsenic superior arsenic a bosom attack. He looked consecutive astatine maine and said, "You know, I person a difficult clip taking guys for illustration you seriously. Why would you person a family erstwhile you should beryllium dedicating your full life to moving your business?"

Without missing a beat, I responded, "That's absorbing — I've ever struggled to understand guys for illustration you. What's the constituent of making money if you don't person anybody to bask it with? Where's the restitution successful being a single, 45-year-old feline surviving successful a penthouse connected University Avenue successful Palo Alto? Wouldn't that consciousness quiet and aged aft a while? For me, my activity is filled pinch purpose; I get to spell location and play pinch a bunch of adorable small kids who emotion me."

I said this successful a calm, philosophical measurement arsenic if I were simply sharing an alternate constituent of position alternatively of countering an insult. My co-founder, meanwhile, appeared to beryllium devastated that he'd brought the full point up — the gathering was arsenic bully arsenic complete now.

But you cognize what? The 2nd those words came retired of the elder investor's mouth, I knew I didn't want his money. Family intends excessively overmuch to maine to partner pinch personification who could disregard it truthful cavalierly.

Related: An Open Letter from an Entrepreneur Dad to His Kids connected How to Find Success

Family and business

Family and business are not mutually exclusive, but let's beryllium realistic. Running a business is highly difficult, stressful and unpredictable. There will decidedly beryllium times erstwhile you person to powerfulness done setbacks, seemingly astatine the costs of spending clip pinch the ones you emotion most.

The problem originates erstwhile obstacles and opportunities are treated arsenic marathons alternatively than sprints. Every entrepreneur faces a sprint astatine 1 constituent aliases different — thing goes disconnected the rails, aliases there's an opportunity you want to capitalize on, truthful you walk much clip astatine activity than you usually want to.

A marathon, connected the different hand, is what occurs erstwhile you're moving astir the timepiece simply to alleviate the inevitable anxieties of entrepreneurship. You show yourself that you must activity astir the timepiece because it makes you consciousness amended to do truthful — "If I'm working, I'm not failing."

Make nary mistake, this is simply a lie. Like each lies, it'll extremity up hurting you temporarily, nary matter really bully it makes you feel.

Related: You Don't Need to Sacrifice Your Family to Pursue Being an Entrepreneur. Here's How to Save Yourself 500 Hours Per Year.

Sacrifice versus rewards

It's a dismal picture: you put successful a thirteen-hour time and get location astatine 7 aliases 8 to find that you've missed dinner, the kids are already successful furniture and your partner's angry that erstwhile again you've chosen activity complete family. In this case, you aren't alleviating the accent of entrepreneurship arsenic overmuch arsenic adding to it unbearably. You're pointlessly exhausting yourself while avoiding your top assets for inspiration and renewal.

My wide norm of thumb for balancing family and activity passim my full profession has been to return advantage of travel. When I'm retired of town, I activity constantly. I shove 5 days of activity into three. When I'm successful town, I'm ever location by six aliases six-thirty. When I'm home, I'm ever coming pinch my kids, coming pinch Rachel. It's only erstwhile everyone's dormant that I grind retired other activity hours if needed.

I can't ideate trying to crank retired those aforesaid hours and being distracted by the truth that you consciousness for illustration a loser because you're missing meal yet again. It's the aforesaid number of hours sloppy — why not spell home, return a break, clear your head, put successful a intent extracurricular of activity and past spell backmost to that activity erstwhile you've fulfilled your obligations arsenic a genitor and partner?

To statesman with, it recharges your batteries. Brain subject has taught america that you person a constricted magnitude of clip each time to execute astatine the highest level. After a definite number of hours, location are diminishing returns connected the power you expend versus the value of the results.

Trust me— erstwhile you're emotion bully astir yourself arsenic a spouse aliases a begetter aliases mother, it's for illustration a changeable of axenic energy. Putting successful the other hours aft you've reaffirmed your emotion for your family will beryllium a overmuch much productive experience.

There's really only 1 norm erstwhile it comes to spending clip pinch family: beryllium present, beryllium present, beryllium present. It's not astir pretending to beryllium location erstwhile your mind is still brooding successful the office. To execute a equilibrium betwixt activity and family, you've sewage to put down your phone, adjacent your machine and springiness yourself wholly to the moment.