Behind the Scenes of Running a Family Business

Today's blog post is special because since I announced that I left my corporate job (if you want the whole story, read it here), I have been getting lots of questions about how we are navigating through this as a family. This is really important because the decision was a family one. 

Leaving my corporate job was not in the formal plan six months ago, or even three months ago. We knew as a family it was the goal, but it wasn’t formalized yet. 

Long story short, working together is what got us to the goal faster so I thought it would be fun to chat with my husband Scott on the blog this week to answer some questions about what running a family business looks like behind the scenes. 

The Beginning

As a fun fact, Scott and I met 18 years ago and grew up a block and a half away from each other. But we are nine years apart in age so never knew each other, even though our parents did. It's such a crazy story, right? 

When I first started this business, Scott thought I was nuts (his words). We had two young twin daughters that required a lot of attention and he didn’t see where the time to invest in and build my business would come from. At the same time, he was skeptical of network marketing and what that would all entail. I know a lot of you can relate to that. 

Scott and I are very different in terms of how we plan and learn. I am 110% in or not at all, I don’t really have a middle ground. So when asking Scott how he knew this business was the real deal, he stated that it came in stages. He could hear a lot of excitement in my voice on calls and saw me walk out of the office with a smile on my face. He knew I was excited and passionate about what I was doing. 

Next of course was the bank account. When the revenue really started coming in, Scott noticed. He saw success, excitement from both me and my clients, and got to attend an event with me where he got to see firsthand how it wasn’t a one-on-one thing. It was so much more collaboration and teamwork that got him both feet in. 

Communicate, communicate, communicate

The minute I started opening up and sharing more with Scott, it helped everyone understand that this business wasn’t going away, and now that it had some legs, it was important to share and be on the same page. Scott shared that with his background in real estate, the key is “location, location, location.” When it comes to working with a spouse, the most important thing is “communicate, communicate, communicate”

By letting Scott in on my plans and actually asking him to take over some things and tasks for me, he was able to take some ownership in the business and the process which helped us to work together. 

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Leaving Corporate Dependency

I asked Scott how he knew it was time to “rip off the corporate bandaid” and leave my job. Both seeing me host our mastermind ladies for a retreat in Columbus last summer and attending an event for a mastermind that I am a part of helped him feel confident in setting aside some of his concerns and made him realize that “hey, if you’re going to jump, you better jump with both feet.”

Scott admitted that it came quicker than we both thought, but knew it was time to go all-in with my business and that meant leaving my corporate job. And its benefits and consistent paycheck. We have done a lot to prepare for this time over the years (retirement, paying off all debt, etc) so that it wasn't a complete shock to our household. 

Scott’s advice for working with your spouse:

• Set boundaries. Specifically on when you are going to work and talk about work (ie not at 10:30 at night while you’re laying in bed). 
• Grow a little bit thicker skin. We often can be more sensitive when dealing with a spouse and taking suggestions from them.
• Take time to celebrate successes. It is important to remember and celebrate how far you've come. 

One of the biggest and most important pieces of my decision to leave my corporate job and pursue my business full-time with my husband was our daughters. They are eight and mention often how happy they are that I get them on the bus in the morning and pick them up after school and don’t have to work as much. I strongly believe you can build a full-time business on a part-time schedule, and have big plans to continue to do so but by making an even bigger impact. One that impacts my girls and our family in a positive way. 

This is just a peek into our relationship as a family. Should we do this more often? Like a he said / she said blog post? You will have to let us know. 

 Looking for more on this topic and your High-Level Action items? Check out the Strategy Lab in the Crush the Rush Club!