TBSL_MixBusinessWithFriendship-1

Photo by Pearl

If you ask Google whether you should start a business with friends, you will find a plethora of articles telling you that it’s not a good idea. They’ll warn you that you’ll have to sacrifice your business for your friendship, or vice versa. We don’t agree. We knew that going into business with friends would give our company a strong foundation of trust and teamwork. We didn’t see any reason why we couldn’t create a strong business together and form an even stronger friendship along the way. Although the road has been bumpy, we can say with confidence that we’ve figured out a way to mix business and friendship. Here’s what we’ve learned on our journey:

01 | BE PICKY
Think critically about yourself and how you relate to different friends. If your best friend is unreliable, it doesn’t matter how well you get along — you may not get anything done, or you could get stuck with most of the work. Make sure you and your business partner(s) have similar priorities and are equally invested in making sure your company is successful.

02 | CELEBRATE DIFFERENCE!
While it’s great to work with people of like minds, it’s not a great idea to work with friends who are too similar. You and your friends/business partners might be stellar at creative things like photography, graphic design, and writing, but if you’re all terrible at math, that’s not a great sign for the finance side of your company. Work with friends who have different strengths and unique points of view — your business will be better because of it

03 | LEARN HOW TO ARGUE AND HOW TO MOVE ON
Arguments are inevitable, especially when you’re starting a business with friends. From choosing the color of your logo to budgeting your finances, any decision can turn into a fight. The key to work disagreements is to deal with them right away and to keep them separate from your personal friendships. Tackle conflicts thoughtfully and know when to step down from a fight.

04 | TAKE TIME TO JUST BE FRIENDS
Don’t forget that you started out as friends, not business partners. We take time to hang out as friends, whether that’s during lunchtime basketball games at the office or chatting over a beer on the weekends. In the end, your friendship is at the core of your business, so you can’t neglect it. In our case, a strong friendship equals a strong business.

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FROM THE EDITOR
At Conscious, we are inspired by remarkable people and organizations and so we set out to tell stories that highlight human interest stories, global initiatives, innovation, community development, and social impact. You can read more stories like this when you subscribe.


Editorial Collaborator: This Bar Saves Lives Founders join Conscious with a monthly column to share their ideas about creating a social enterprise. Read our interview with This Bar here and follow the monthly column here.