029: What It's Really Like to Work With Your Spouse | Judson and Katie Armentrout

Married entrepreneurs face a kind of pressure no corporate career ever prepares you for: building a company from nothing with the same person you raise kids with, split a mortgage with, and come home to every night. If you have ever dreamed about starting your own thing, or wondered what happens at home when both spouses walk away from steady paychecks at once, this conversation is for you. Katie Armentrout sits down with her husband, Judson Armentrout, for a rare look at what it is really like to be married co-founders, two people who each left stable corporate careers within two years of each other to build their own businesses from scratch, with three kids, a dog, and a mortgage riding on it.Katie Armentrout, founder of Peoplefluence and a Certified Working Genius Facilitator, and Judson Armentrout, founder of Building Block Solutions and co-founder of Barebones Solutions, talk through what changed when they traded a $1.5 billion Kroger supply chain and a Procter & Gamble career for entrepreneurship, and why Judson's risk tolerance runs higher than most. You will hear how the Working Genius framework shapes how they lead their teams and their kids, how Judson grew their sons' Cub Scout pack from 36 kids to more than 100, and what extreme ownership looked like the day he nearly got fired at Kroger. If you are weighing whether to bet on yourself, listen before you leap.In this episode, you’ll discover:Why the stress of building a company from scratch with your spouse is completely different than working together in an established family business.How Judson learned to lead through influence alone, with zero direct reports, during his first years at a beef processing plant.What it actually looks like day to day when two spouses each walk away from corporate paychecks within two years of one another.Why Judson's risk tolerance is higher than most people's, and how growing up watching his parents run their own businesses shaped that.How the Armentrouts use small family rituals, like a cake pop for every new client, to keep morale up during the hard seasons of entrepreneurship.What Judson learned about leadership, infrastructure, and asking for help while growing a Cub Scout pack from 36 kids to more than 100.Why Judson took full ownership of a quality failure at Kroger instead of letting his team take the blame, and what that taught him about extreme ownership. We talk about:00:00 The real difference between family business stress and startup stress 00:35 Why this episode is for anyone who has ever wanted to start their own company 04:00 When did Judson first realize he was a leader 05:43 Learning to lead through influence with no direct reports at a beef plant 09:00 How Katie and Judson met in their MBA program at UNC Chapel Hill 14:14 Growing up in an entrepreneurial family and where his risk tolerance comes from 20:38 What is it really like to work with your spouse inside a startup 25:09 How the Armentrouts celebrate wins as a family with cake pops 29:04 What they hope their kids take away from a dual entrepreneurship household 35:40 How leading a Cub Scout pack of 100 kids made Judson a better leader 44:00 Judson's favorite personality assessment and why Working Genius fits him 47:12 The failure Judson cherishes most and what it taught him about extreme ownershipResources:Wisdom of the Bullfrog by Admiral William McRavenExtreme Ownership by Jocko Willink Connect with Judson: Website: https://buildingblock.solutions/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/judsonarmentrout/ Connect with meInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/katie_armentroutYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@katiearmentroutLinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/katiearmentrout Newsletter: http://www.peoplefluence.com/newsletterWebsite: http://www.peoplefluence.com #MarriedEntrepreneurs #CouplesInBusiness #WorkingWithYourSpouse #CorporateToEntrepreneur #SmallBusinessOwner #FamilyBusiness #WorkingGenius #ExtremeOwnership #LeadershipDevelopment #EntrepreneurLife #BusinessPartners #RiskTolerance #SupplyChainLeadership #ParentingEntrepreneurs #StartupLife #WomenInLeadership #HusbandAndWifeBusiness #ThinkOutsideTheBoss