Marriage
grandalf: If you think of marriage as duty, responsibility, time commitment and compromise then it probably isn't compatible with doing a startup.But if you and your spouse love each other for being motivated, self-actualized, driven, and passionate, then a startup and marriage can be wonderfully complimentary.I actually really liked the movie Revolutionary Road for this reason -- it showed what happens when a guy who should be doing a startup ends up taking a safe job because he thinks it's what his marriage demands of him.  In reality his wife was attracted to him because of his passion and his vision and she only came to loathe the soft, mushy, 9 to 5er that he became.   Not a perfect parallel with the startup world but a great exploration of what it means to be "a man" outside of the narrow confines of man as simple uninspired breadwinner or corporate yes-man.Bottom line: If your relationship thrives on the creative life-energy of passion, work and drive, then go for it.  If not, why would you want to marry such a person?