Is it a Good or Bad Idea to go into business with Friends?

hi, 34momma. i am self-employed because i do not want to be hired by anyone, and i do not want to hire anyone, too. of course i can only get limited amount of money, but i also get limited amount of stress. hiring my friends or runnnig business with them is just a nightmare to me. i think friendship is fragile and money can easily destroy it. what if i went bankrupt? i could not take all the responsibilities. besides, i am poor at teamwork if my business grows, i might have to hire someome. but, i am sure that i will avoid hiring someone from my friends. i do not know what kind of business you are launching and if you are good at teamwork. but, if you keep yourself fair to your fellows and offering them a lot of money, i think you can become a good team! good luck!

well that depends, how long and how do you know your friends, if it is deep then no problem but money is the root of all evil (boom saying..) and i have seen friendship destroyed because of money but i have seen friendship blossomed because of partnerships. but likely you will experience a lot of hardships with being business partners and friends.

Money and friendship don't mix my friend. If you involve your friends this way you won't have them for long. If you need their support I'm sure you'll get it for nothing if they are good friends...anything else will send mixed signals....you will be their boss and that's maybe a long way from being a friend.

34 momma I think it can be a very good idea to go into business with your friends. you all know each other and can feel more comfortable talking business with people you know and like as opposed to almost strangers.Also you will do well if you all talk over the way to run the business and all agree on the various points so that you all are on the same page.

Hi momma! I don't really know what to say to this! Going into business wih friends is really very dangerous! It almost always ends up going in a bad direction! I have almost never heard of it working out ok! I wish I could be more positive for you because I know how much is means to you, but I am afraid for you! If these friends of yours that you are going into business with are really close friends then I really hope you are sure because going into business or working with friends or family is the best way to ruin a relationship! I worked for my Aunt and Uncle and I did this for many years! The treated me, my Mom and other Uncle worse than all their other employees and we ended up never speaking again! Please be careful!

There is a saying: "Don't mix business with pleasure". Have you heard it often enough to wonder what that means? You are about to start up a business and pay money for their time, so that tell me you are hiring their services. You are not being sincere to start with and are using friendship for your own gain. If you want all to go well you need to realize that when you step on that business path, they are no longer your friends. They are what you both agree to be, business partners or employees or employers. You need to have legal clarifications for all parties responsibilities and expectations. It is not a matter of friendship. Its about making money.

I think its a bad idea to go into business with friends or family. For some reason it doesn't work out due to people and their egos. I find working especially with women is a bad idea. I have done this before and there is alway one that wants the power. I would rethink this if I were you. If you do this make sure everything is written down on paper and everyone agrees to the way things are to operate. Good luck to you.

it will depend on the level of friendship. for friends who have known each other for a long time,starting a business is a good idea.as long as you sit down and talk about the agreements. being friends is different from being business partners.talking about regulations and setting out rules will help maintain a good business relationship.also, maintain professionalism even if your business partners are your friends.

If you have already worked with them then you know there attitudes at work, if not, then is not a really good idea, more if you're trying with a women group, they are just to envious as to work refers. In my opinion the best workgroup is with family members such as brothers, sisters, cousins that you really know better than a friend that you don't know how he/she can react to certain situations.

For me if you control your patient then go if not then don't think that your friendship to your friend is for long.

I think that it is a good idea to do business with friends. At least you know who you are working with. You know their personality and communication will be alot easier. I hope your business will do well. Happy mylotting!

Hi, I think it's not a bad idea as long as you have chosen the right friends to be your partner.. And also you need to set rules that all of you agreed..so that your business will run smoothly and just in case something bad happened you have rules to follow.. I hope my comments help you.. =)

Hi, I think it's not a bad idea as long as you have chosen the right friends to be your partner.. And also you need to set rules that all of you agreed..so that your business will run smoothly and just in case something bad happened you have rules to follow.. I hope my comments help you.. =)

I don't go with business with my friends however I do some business with my partner as he help me to do some tasks and half of our on line business belong to him. I would never do that with friends as I worry that they will force me to do something I don't wan't to do. The best thing is to separate friends from the business as this is not affect your life in both ways.

A lot of that depends on the individuals....and how they look at the business. Their wavelength on this aspect should match ...even more than their friendship. With friends, one can argue and get back to being friends. But if business partners who are friend are at loggerheads, it is difficult to differentiate between friendship and the business. My husband has his friend as a partner and their business has been going well for around 15 years now. That is because both of them have the same goals and vision for the business...even when they have different viewpoints, it is on the nitty-gritty and not really the bigger idea. So, they work well together. At the same time, it would be a very bad idea for me to go into business with my husband or another friend who has been asking me to for quite sometime now. I know that her way of looking at business and mine are very different and we would end up not being friends if we went into business together. So, I stay away.

Going into business with friends can be rewarding. In the wrong circumstances it can be a nightmare. Go into such a gameplan with your eyes wide open. Make sure every agreement among you and your friends is in writing. It saves a lot of turmoil and bitterness in the end.

It is a good idea but I don't know what will be the outcome of it. Your friendship is at risk because you are not only friends now but also business partners. Things will change. You will discover unexpected things like one of your friend is guarding her profit and benefits. The other one is bossy or the other one just doing nothing. Each and every one will exercise its power depending on your status in your business. The reason why I am telling you this because I have a group of friends who organized business partnership. The business was profitting because they were all good in that business. They were fitted to their craft. Their lifestyle change because each and every partners got a new house and a brand new car out from the profit. Eventually they've split up because of selfish motives. Some made their own business with the same line of business. So they were competing with each other. Of course, you can't blame the fact that not all client will remain. Probably some client will go to the one who service them beforehand. Some accused other partners for any personal and business up to legal action. So the friendship was gone because of clashed in business. So if you are planning one, make sure you have all the necessary documents for your advantage and benefit for everyone as well incase it will be needed in the future. If the boat will rock, you know what to do.

Never start any business with friends. Cause it will be hard for you to control them or to work under them. And money is such thing which destroys the family unity, and this is just a friendship. Whenever money takes a part in any relationship the relationship becomes money depended. And money depended relation is not healthy. ever think to start business with friends. Now its your choice.

I think you can try, but very few business with friends are successful Best thing is to have employees and contributors Good luck !