When Your Spouse Is Also Your Boss!

If you don’t like your boss, or the way he or she is treating you, you can resign and find another job with a more reasonable supervisor. But what if you are also married to your boss? A woman Azriela Jaffe interviewed for Honey, I Want to Start my Own Business, A Planning Guide for Couples, told her that after months of verbal abuse by her husband and supervisor, she quit with no notice, and within a week she was working at a nice salary for someone else. Remarkably, their marriage survived that ordeal. Six months later, after intensive marriage counseling, her husband swallowed his pride and begged her to return, acknowledging her true worth to his business after all. She now keeps a typed letter of resignation by her computer, as a reminder to her husband not to take her value for granted.

Working for your spouse can be the best thing that ever happened to your business and your marriage, if five key ingredients are all, and consistently, present in the mix. 

First, the spouse employee must really want to be there, and enjoy the work that he or she is doing. 

Second, the spouse-employee must be a competent worker, performing at least as well as co-workers, and representing the company well to customers. 

Third, the spouse-supervisor must communicate respect, appreciation, and gratitude for the spouse-employee’s contribution, no worst than the way he or she supervises other employees, and hopefully as good or better. 

Fourth, over time, the spouse-employee must start feeling a sense of partnership in the business. 

And fifth, the husband and wife must enjoy spending a good deal of time together.

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My story:

It was in March 2008 when I stopped teaching and helped my husband in his business. I had no choice as his brother had resigned from the partnership.

In the beginning, it was really tough. My husband expected me to know everything. Furthermore, I was not Chinese educated. It was tough to learn all those medical stuff's names. 

Never mind about that. I had to know other stuff too in the business.

My husband put himself under stress and used to take it out on me. I was really angry but I had no say.

I used to hide myself feeling sorrowful but I always came back as if nothing had happened.

If I really had the choice, I want to quit..

It's not easy working with our spouse.