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Time of India
20-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
'Forget romance, hire a COO': Bengaluru founder warns founder couples to keep spouses out of start-ups
In the age of Instagram-perfect couplepreneurs, Bengaluru-based founder Anurag Singh is here with a reality check—and it's as blunt as it gets. In a viral LinkedIn post, Singh pulls no punches: 'Don't onboard your spouse to spice up your startup.' While entrepreneurial love stories like Ghazal and Varun Alagh ( Mamaearth ) are celebrated as #CoupleGoals, Singh warns that they are exceptions, not the norm. Startups are already brutal on mental health, finances, and personal time. Now, throw marriage into that high-pressure mix? 'You're playing with fire,' Singh writes, citing co-founder conflicts, emotional burnout, and financial instability as some of the top reasons why 'startup romance' goes south more often than not. Why early-stage founders need separation, not sentiment? Singh opens with a striking statistic: 65% of startups fail due to co-founder conflicts. 'Now imagine mixing that with marriage,' he warns. While power couples like the Alaghs made it work, it was only after Mamaearth had achieved product-market fit, meaning the core business had stabilised, before they joined forces. Singh contrasts this with several unnamed Indian startups that silently collapsed when married co-founders clashed over roles, equity, or direction. His advice? Keep your personal and professional lines ironclad, especially in the first year. Startups and parenting? Don't try to 'manage' Singh doesn't sugarcoat the cost of scaling a startup while raising kids. Quoting a stat that 72% of founder-parents say their children feel neglected during high-growth phases, he adds a sharp warning: 'Don't onboard your spouse unless you have reliable childcare and at least 6 months of expenses covered by the business.' Instead of forcing your partner into unpaid work,or worse, emotional labour, Singh says: Hire a COO. Not your spouse. Divorce and start-ups Singh references the dark side of mixing matrimony with market risk. A Bengaluru-based SaaS couple allegedly split after clashing over a VC term sheet that asked one spouse to exit the company. Singh cites data showing that 40% of founder divorces cite business disputes as a key trigger. His point: 'Startup stress amplifies marital cracks. Therapy won't fix a broken cap table.' Startups aren't kirana stores, know the difference Singh draws a sharp line between family-run businesses and venture-backed startups. The former have stability, routine, and clear roles. Startups? They're defined by chaos, pivots, investor pressure, and uncertainty. 'Emotions are liabilities in early-stage startups,' he says. That's why founders like Ritesh Agarwal (Oyo) and Radhika Ghai (Kindlife) didn't co-found with family members, even when navigating personal turmoil. So, when can you work with your spouse? Singh doesn't dismiss couple-led ventures outright, but he believes it can only work under three conditions: -Post product-market fit -Clearly defined roles and equity -Therapy on speed dial Any deviation from this? Red flags. 'We'll figure it out' or 'Love will keep us together' are not valid business strategies. 'VCs don't accept love as collateral,' he says. Final thoughts According to him, building a startup is hard. Maintaining a marriage is harder. Doing both simultaneously, especially as co-founders? 'That's a statistical anomaly, not a strategy,' he writess.
New York Post
29-04-2025
- General
- New York Post
Experts say these are the red flags that may indicate you're in a ‘silent divorce'
You may still be wearing a wedding ring — but if you feel more like a roommate than a romantic partner, experts say your marriage might already be toast. The phrase 'silent divorce' refers to couples who stay under the same roof, but their emotional connection is long gone. Relationship pros say couples often stick it out for finances or kids. 'A silent divorce is when you're not legally separated, but you're definitely emotionally, mentally and almost to a certain point physically removed, too, from your spouse,' Stephanie Moir, a licensed mental health counselor in Florida, told CNN. 3 A silent divorce is when you're still married on paper — but emotionally, mentally, and even physically, you've already checked out, experts say. – 3 The slow fade can start with skipped vacations and solo appearances at birthday parties. A dry spell in the bedroom — or even just a lack of affectionate touch — can be another dead giveaway, relationship pros reveal. fizkes – 'If you don't really work on a marriage, it could really lead to that emotional disconnect where two people are just not on the same page anymore,' Moir warned. And just because a couple looks Instagram-perfect doesn't mean all is well behind closed doors. 'They may present like things are OK on the outside, and they're great co-parents, and they work out logistics,' said Lisa Lavelle, a psychotherapist in New York City, according to CNN. 'One of the first red flags that I tend to see when couples are on the verge of or in a silent divorce is when they feel more like roommates than romantic partners,' she revealed to the site. Skipping the drama isn't always a good sign, either. Fighting, as dysfunctional as it sounds, can mean two people still care enough to battle it out. '…fighting often reflects we're disagreeing at the moment, we're not on the same page, we're not seeing eye to eye — but we're trying to help our partners see where we're coming from,' Justin Ho, a licensed professional counselor in Georgia, noted to the outlet. 3 Ditching the drama isn't always a win. Experts say couples who still argue might actually care — but when the silence sets in, it's usually game over. PKpix – In a silent divorce, though, even the shouting stops. 'This is a couple who will talk about logistics, (like) what's for dinner. But anything that is meaningful or uncomfortable, they don't talk about it anymore,' Lavelle said. 'There's a lack of vulnerability.' Experts say the first step to saving — or ending — a silent divorce is to break the silence. 'Ask them, 'Are you noticing the same thing as well?' And really just try to get aligned at that moment,' Ho advised.
