Partners in Marriage and Business: Can It Work?

The family owned business is the foundation for a community's economic stability. In order for a family owned business to succeed the husband and wife need to be able to work together. Running a business can be very challenging, and when your business partner is also your spouse, emotional issues between you can have a major impact on   whether you can successfully run a company together. How do you deal with issues of financial management, marketing and public relations, negotiating contracts, collections, hiring, firing, record keeping, accounting, and paying yourself a reasonable salary? Do egos get in the way of good decision making practices? Do your work habits complement each other or clash with each other? Are expectations realistic or does impatience and disappointment cause you to quit when the going gets rough? Do you involve your children in learning the business and working with you? Do you listen to your children's suggestions on how to improve the business? And is your marriage strong enough to withstand periods of economic strain when business is slow? Couples who have run businesses together share their experiences