I had a lot of trouble with the same thing, but with my mom when I told her I was starting my own business. The concern comes from a mindset of scarcity and feeling afraid of losing things/risk/failure. What helped me was remembering that the concerns and negativity were born from wanting to protect me because she loves me. What I did instead was not share as much with her, or ask for her permission, and instead have those conversations (like this one) with other people who have taken the leap and have been successful or have found success. I ended up saying to her, “I love you, and I know you are concerned because you love me, but all I need from you is your love and support of my decisions and I will figure the rest out because I believe in myself.” Her doubt still sometimes comes up in conversations - whether it is a question, tone of voice or whatever and it still hurts, but I just remember that I am a strong person with a stronger mindset and belief in myself than her, and that is what makes me fit to do this. Best of luck to you - it is a hard situation for sure.

Over 99% of people will never work for themselves, the idea can be so alien it makes people uncomfortable. Do your research and keep on trucking.

I would be super happy if my wife were only negative. Mine brings anger and degradation.

One sale is probably the solution for both of us.

ONE SALE.

Easy fix.

A) Don’t share your ideas and include others in your creative process.

Or B) Use this feedback.

My dads like this. Did you try putting her in rice?

My wife’s been my biggest supporter and I would not be in Vegas rn on my investors dollar all expenses paid if I gave up.

Took 3 years of grueling work to get here. First time I’ve been “paid”.

Wish she was here with me. Some people aren’t cut out for the risk/reward factor.

If she is pragmatic when it comes to the business it self, you should maybe listen to outside views. We tend to hype up our own idea in our heads and only see the positives, while neglecting the negatives.

If she is pragmatic when it comes to you and your life, then I would just stop discussing stuff like that with her.

Maybe she’s right.

I’m not in your situation but as a woman who is an entrepreneur I understand the propensity to be very risk-averse so I have been dealing a lot with a similar inner critic. You really have the chance to develop a growth mindset here and if you are able to deal with this feedback from a loved one, it will prepare you for further bigger challenges and hurdles along the way. For me, I try to use this negative pushback I get as a way to propel me forward. Again, you did not give information about what exactly she is saying but I feel so much better whenever I am able to provide data that supports my hypothesis. So data about the market size, customer need etc. It’s one thing if she doesn’t want you to start a business, it’s another thing if she is raising concerns about this business. Like most things, it is about taking incremental, low-cost steps. Communicate and draw up a financial plan. A huge part of business is about being able to manage relationships so you never want to forget the most important one.

Women, in general, tend to seek stability more than anything else, so it is totally normal.

A couple of tips:

• To be realistic, you should always consider the worst-case scenario angle, so you can consider her an unexpected-situation-generator.
• You shouldn’t be looking for validation but tough love. She is useful like that too!
• It is good that she is open about her concerns, so at least you see things coming, and you can “take the temperature” of the situation. My ex-girlfriend became resentful overnight, after some months of leaving my job (even having a 2 year runway). They can’t help it…

Anyways, try to see the silver linings and don’t let her down (much).

Given you’ve diagnosed her as negative the challenge is going to be taking her criticism with a grain of salt. I get it too, my GF is very negative and risk sensitive. I try to just accept that and see it for what it is instead of getting bummed out by it.

You never wanna be so high on your own supply that you ignore the rammifications. You do however want to be rationally optimistic and have the growth mindset of putting in the work. The most successful entrepeneurs seek out harsh criticism as an important counter-balance to their beliefs so they know the cons as well as the pros.

If you can find a way to learn to accept criticism as the “con” POV then it will be valuable. If you’re too early in the process and the negativity will hurt you then you should probably just not discuss it with her.

Are you always talking and never taking action and doing anything? Get something started before telling her

Its better to keep work and business separate to home.

Step 1 watch the movie the Founder

Step 2 plow ahead and keep going, she’ll ride along or fall of the truck

Go ahead and fire her. Youre going in a different direction

If not, tell her that hey, im going to be pursuing these and i dont want you to be pragmatic right now. I know there are risks, and many ways this wont work out, and many ways this will work out. If you dknt pursue your dream you are already dead. Theres positive things ti say and see future, and negative things to say and see future. So can you give me positive ones? Ill ask you for more realistic pragmatic looks later when i want it