# Husbands' Business Ideas



## harvestmoon (Jan 8, 2014)

DH served in the USMC for 4 years and is now in school part-time pursuing an engineering degree. He brings in a modest income from the GI Bill. We’ve been married for 3 years and are both in our mid-twenties. He has a small business which we have personally loaned over 5,000 and have 50% of that still invested in the business. I doubt we will ever get that money back. To give you some perspective, we currently have $3,500 in savings. He constantly says he doesn’t get to spend enough of our personal money on his business and projects and makes me feel like the bad guy. He also refuses to be involved in bookkeeping or improving his professional skills. I work full-time to support us and am working on a master’s degree at night. I love my husband, but it seems he cannot face the facts about our financial situation and his business. He never sees himself working for a company and instead believes he can support us through his business when he finishes college. Yesterday, over the phone, while discussing business plans, I said that his business doesn’t make any money (which is 100% true) and he just said “I’m gonna go now” and hung up. I admittedly said this at a very bad time, but I don’t understand why he can’t just face the facts. I am very sacred that I am married to a man who will never be satisfied working at a job and providing for his family. It would be great if he could contribute with his business, but that doesn’t seem viable. What do I do? Allow him to keep working on his business until he finishes college and then hope for the best? Or do I crush his dreams (and possibly our marriage) and make him face the facts now? I just feel like I am married to an adolescent and need some guidance….any will be appreciated.


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## Homemaker_Numero_Uno (Jan 18, 2011)

Take him to the SBA which has a mentor program and set up his business as a separate entity. Do not invest any of your own money into it if that's not what you want to do. Once the business is set up he can apply for loans and pay himself a salary off of the business. 

Also, get yourself an accountant, to advise on tax matters as well as how to set up your finances so that you are protected, as well as any equity you have in joint assets, etc. 

Some people are quite loveable but really horrible at finances. Your H is probably one of these, so you have to be firm and protect the both of you on the home front, while also allowing him to safely take risks (and possibly face downfalls) with his own ventures. If the murky accounting and mixing of personal finances continues, then it will be enabling him to avoid bare facts of profitability. On the other hand, if you have a dedicated space to the business in your home, rented or owned, you can likely deduct expenses, this is where a good accountant can help. Bookkeeping is one thing, but an enrolled agent/accountant is money in the pocket, especially if you're just starting out.


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## Thor (Oct 31, 2011)

Engineers typically are terrible business owners. (I say this as an engineer who worked in the defense industry for 9 years). Engineers see a cause-effect which can be calculated. Engineers are frequently not high on the people skills. Oh, he might be quite polite and fun, but he may not understand the schmoozing and scheming part of business. You can't quantify the people skills, and you can't make your cold numbers on a page happen in the real world.

Some engineers do make good money in their own businesses. These people make the business a priority, not the engineering. They seek out the money, they don't spend all their mental efforts on the cool technical engineering side of it.

Have you heard of Dave Ramsey? He has some great financial management resources for couples. Everything from DVDs to books and seminars. The basis of his plan is to set a strong foundation, which starts at a budget. Your husband would get some play money for his business in the budget, whatever you two agree on. But not a penny more! You also put in place some savings for a rainy day and a long term retirement.

Your husband might really get into the math of the money management....

One stat they gave us when I was a new hire at IBM (right out of college as an engineer in the early 1980's) was that if you put the max $2000 per year into an IRA from age 21 to age 30, and then put nothing more into it after that, there would be more total money there at age 65 than if you did nothing until age 30 and then put in $2k every year all the way to age 65!

There is a true cost to every dollar spent today, which is the loss of that dollar growing in some investment.

I would not squash your husband's hopes of having his own company. I would try to create a compartment for it financially. If you can live with him sucking $x out of the family finances every month, let him do it.

For sure the most important thing is he finish his engineering degree. If the business is slowing him down he should put it on hold for now. The loss of income due to extra years in school will be greater than any modest profits he might make with his business.


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## wilderness (Jan 9, 2013)

How new is the business? It's typical for most businesses, even successful businesses, to lose money for years before they become profitable. Perhaps he knows this and believes in himself enough to continue fighting. A successful business owner makes a lot more money than most employees.


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## PBear (Nov 16, 2010)

Honestly, it doesn't sound like your husband has figured out that running a business is a lot more than just selling a widget or providing a service. There's a whole lot more work involved, like sales, bookkeeping, general management stuff. Unless he does all that stuff successfully too, his business is best left as a hobby, where it can only consume limited resources. 

C
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## seeking sanity (Oct 20, 2009)

Getting a business off the ground can be financially and personally great, plus many us are just unemployable by nature and have no choice but to have a business.

I've seen under the hood of a LOT of businesses over the years: The biggest indicators of success are basically two things:

1. Does he voraciously consume information on business - does he read business books, articles, does he look beyond his expertise into finance, legal, marketing, managment etc. 

Successful people are curious and seek out information.

2. Is he action-oriented? When he gets an idea, does he do something with it right away, or procrastinate?

Successful people take action. Today, like RIGHT NOW.

Most of the failing business owners I've run into (and tried to help) are failing because they lack curiosity and they find excuses not to take action. The successful ones are always curious and motivated to take action.


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## mablenc (Feb 26, 2013)

I think he should study business administration, finance of accounting. At least some courses.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## rubpy3 (Nov 19, 2013)

I second that engineers make horrible business owners. I say this as a former engineer turned small business management consultant.

Feel free to pm me if there are any specific details you'd like to talk about.


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## RandomDude (Dec 18, 2010)

> 1. Does he voraciously consume information on business - does he read business books, articles, does he look beyond his expertise into finance, legal, marketing, managment etc.
> 
> Successful people are curious and seek out information.


This


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## RandomDude (Dec 18, 2010)

Just wanted to add to, in reference to what others have mentioned in terms of people skills; prior to partnering, then ownership and later expansion of my business -> I worked two jobs. One which gave me a vital skill set was sales and marketing.

You can have the best product and/or services but without good marketing you're quite frankly fked. And I'm not just talking posting ads, making discounts to generate leads etc, I'm talking business to business, referrals, thinking outside the box, closing deals with other competitors and other establishments in the industry. That's how I achieved the success I have today - marketing.

No people skills = No business I'm afraid


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## pinotnoir (Jul 13, 2013)

I don't agree that setting up as a separate entity is a good idea, nor will it automatically qualify him to qualify for loans or pay himself a salary. Depending on the business, this could be good for asset protection, but it complicates things for a small business and gives you no advantages, especially for bank loans.

What he really needs is a written business plan that you both understand and agree on. The plan should include some financial projections so you know when/if to pull the plug or to continue. It should also include specific actions: what he will do to improve sales, specific target markets he will focus on, specific sales plans, etc. That way you both know what it takes to make it successful, and understand how much time it could take to turn the corner.

Give him a chance, but don't support a wild goose chase with no plan and no accountability.





Homemaker_Numero_Uno said:


> Take him to the SBA which has a mentor program and set up his business as a separate entity. Do not invest any of your own money into it if that's not what you want to do. Once the business is set up he can apply for loans and pay himself a salary off of the business.
> 
> Also, get yourself an accountant, to advise on tax matters as well as how to set up your finances so that you are protected, as well as any equity you have in joint assets, etc.
> 
> Some people are quite loveable but really horrible at finances. Your H is probably one of these, so you have to be firm and protect the both of you on the home front, while also allowing him to safely take risks (and possibly face downfalls) with his own ventures. If the murky accounting and mixing of personal finances continues, then it will be enabling him to avoid bare facts of profitability. On the other hand, if you have a dedicated space to the business in your home, rented or owned, you can likely deduct expenses, this is where a good accountant can help. Bookkeeping is one thing, but an enrolled agent/accountant is money in the pocket, especially if you're just starting out.


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