He has a family to provide for which does need to eat and their well being probably plays a huge role in his decision making. Giving up a comfortable salary to pursue something ambitious may be an easy decision on a personal level, but it may be very difficult on the rest of the family.

The connection to old salary is simply family expectations/lifestyle. That's a real decision and I can imagine dissuades a lot of people. I would be more risk averse if my outcome affected other people I cared about.