I run a fairly profitable B2C online education business which has seen a very good growth for the past few quarters. My work life balance though is badly screwed up. I feel I can comfortably grow the business albeit at a slower rate. But also fear that competition may catch up.
Do you think I should pursue VC money?
and this won't complicate things ?
If it's not broke.... Don't fix it. You're profitable.
Also, know that any investor is going to force you to sell it at some point to get a return.
Fundraising and work life balance ? At the same time ? Forget it. At least for the first years. Work life balance may occur after growth phase, when the company is no longer a startup but a profitable corporate.
We raised money a year ago and went from four employees to ten overnight. This allows founders to focus on higher value activities although you will still work like crazy. In our case some hires were excellent others problematic. We are behind plan but growing rapidly still and the investors professionalised our board. We definitely think it was worth it.
Online education business or information marketing business? Lel
I've only raised institutional money. Board meetings and all that stuff can be a pain in the ass. That said, having your feet held to the fire keeps you honest and teaches you very quickly what matters in hyper growth. Personally, I've found having VC money into the biz to be clarifying. I think the trick is to find patient capital. You want VCs who believe in building billion dollar companies and not just quick flips.