According to Sifted, serial entrepreneur James Routledge argues that founders who underpay themselves are creating “emotional debt” that damages both their personal wellbeing and company performance. He shares his own experience starting at £40k salaries when raising a small seed round at age 25, then gradually increasing to £70k and eventually £90k as the company reached £1m ARR. Routledge notes that founder salary discussions rarely face pushback from investors or boards, and that secondary share sale requests typically fail due to founder confidence issues rather than investor resistance. He emphasizes that paying yourself properly isn’t just about money—it’s about respect and acknowledging that the business wouldn’t exist without you.
The founder mindset trap
Here’s the thing about founder martyrdom—it feels noble at first. You’re being scrappy, showing commitment, reinvesting every pound. But after a few years, that £40k salary starts to feel different when your employees are making six figures and your corporate friends are buying houses. The resentment builds slowly, almost imperceptibly, until you’re bitter toward the very company you created. And the craziest part? You’re usually the only one who thinks asking for proper compensation makes you look uncommitted.
The investor reality
Routledge makes a crucial point that most founders miss: when you finally do ask for that raise, nobody bats an eyelid. Investors aren’t sitting around hoping you’ll stay underpaid—they want stable, focused leadership. Think about it—would you rather have a founder constantly stressed about making rent or one who can focus entirely on growing the business? The math is pretty simple when you look at it that way.
Beyond the paycheck
This isn’t really about money though. It’s about operating like adults versus running a “university project.” When you respect your own time and worth, you naturally extend that respect to everything else in the business. You don’t resent paying that engineer £120k because you’re not resenting your own compensation. The energy you get from proper pay translates directly into better decision-making and leadership. And in competitive hardware sectors where quality matters—whether you’re sourcing industrial components or building manufacturing systems—that professional mindset makes all the difference. Companies that take themselves seriously from the start tend to attract better talent and make smarter long-term investments in their infrastructure and technology stack.
Time to stop the martyrdom
So why do we keep doing this to ourselves? Probably because startup culture has romanticized struggle for too long. But here’s the reality: your business needs you at your best, not your most sacrificial. Paying yourself properly isn’t greedy—it’s strategic. It’s acknowledging that you’re the most critical asset your company has. And if you won’t value that asset, why should anyone else?
