[charlesju]

I don't get why everyone pushes themselves so hard in a startup. I'm in a fairly profitable startup right now (my first one, never had a job), and I still have more time for my gf than she does for me.

If you have a good idea, solid team, you can execute on great ideas with 40-60 hrs a week. If you're spending more, you're not managing your resources properly.

I really appreciate my gf, she helps me relax and take my mind off of work, so that when I am working, I can be twice as productive.

[swombat]

I think the part that wreaks havoc with relationships is not so much the amount of free time but the timing of it.

For example, if you start off working on your start-up on the side to check your assumptions, that'll suck up a lot of your common free time.

Then, if you work full time on your start-up, you might find that a lot of your essential networking and meetings happen outside of normal office hours. So if your girlfriend is working office hours you might find that you've got a lot of flexibility, just not when she does. So then you find yourself busy when she's free and free when she's busy. Not a recipe for success.