How do founders who faced failure and had to close their startup financially support themselves? Usually, it takes a considerable amount of time to generate income from a new startup. Additionally, many employers are hesitant to hire former founders because they anticipate that these individuals might leave once their own startup stabilizes, or they may question the founders’ skills, as perceived by recruiters.
I always held a full-time job and raised my family while I was building and failing. On the third attempt it was a debt management company right before the wild West debt management boom. We lost everything, even our home and a lot of our belongings. We spent almost a month in the Dallas Life foundation homeless shelter with three young kids and a pregnant wife. Eventually we lived in a friend from church’s garage for about a month and a half until we were able to get a little house for rent. Then we got a nicer house for rent. Then on attempt for made some money but called it quits after about 2 years. Then I just worked full time for years on end looking for the next thing and then was hit with a divorce.
That’s when I started number 5 which is my current successful company. We’ve already broke 50 million dollars top line revenue this year with very high net profits manufacturing and selling commercial truck parts globally.
I’ve got a new wife in the divorce lasted almost 6 and 1/2 years and we ended up with 50/50 custody and all the normal shit but it cost us over a hundred grand in the process.
I built this company because I was at Rock bottom at that moment and I had six children to take care of in a 28 ft camper. I had no car because my wife had totaled both of our cars our truck and our minivan. She had bounced her bank account five or $6,000. Didn’t pay any the bills for a month or two. I didn’t have a phone or a computer or a car but I had a shitty job making 50 grand a year. I decide to kick off bottom.
My new wife is 99% of the reason for my success because she stood by me through all of the horror of those years. We lived in her camper actually because her divorce was just finishing and she had three children two of them grown one still at home. So all together with the baby that we had we have 10 kids five of them still at home.
We’re doing very well now though. Success is the best revenge.