Ask HN: Middle way between being the boss and being a slave?

I have a startup project I'm working on. I need money to complete it. I've applied for and got some jobs but it pretty much always ends the same way with me getting fired. I just do what I think I should be doing, and I don't do what I don't want to do. I argue for a point and if I don't see it's a good idea then I won't do it. I understand some employers may want slaves who will do as their told but that's not what I'm going to do. So I'm not finding income from the job. And I'm not at the stage to really get funding because the idea can boot strap and it's nearly done and I'd rather spend the time finishing it than finding people I don't know to work with. I've asked my friends and family and they've helped me out a bit, sometimes in exchange for some % of capital.

So I wanted to see if there is something I'm missing. A middle way between being CEO all the time and being an employee-slave where I can make money do purchase a bit more runway to still finish and launch my project. Any ideas?