Starting a business with your friends can be a great success, but it comes with special complications.
When you are starting a business you want co-founders to push you, to make you nervous-the kind of person who has an intelligence and motivation that makes you feel like you have to work beyond your limits to keep up.
You also want them to know about things you do not know. You want your partners to have skills and experiences different from what you have, in order to form a formidable team.
If you have friends who meet the requirements of a good co-founder, consider yourself very lucky, but do not expect success to come easily.
Here are 5 lessons that successful entrepreneurs recommend to start a business with your friends
1. Stay in your lane:
They have to define their roles from the beginning of their business. When it comes to friends, it is natural to take a collaborative attitude in all tasks. This can work to a certain extent, but things work better when each of the co-founders can “own” a part of the company.
To do it well you have to understand the weaknesses and strengths of the founding team. Based on this knowledge, the roles of each member can be assigned effectively. Once the roles are defined, do not be afraid to “paint the line”. It’s okay to tell someone to let you do your job and focus on yours. Continue reading: The 5 easiest ways to start your business
2. Have difficult conversations early:
There can only be one CEO, one sales director, one finance director, etc. I repeat, knowing the weaknesses and strengths of the team members is a key point.
It is also important not to be afraid of having important talks such as the division of property, salaries, titles, etc. The longer these more uncomfortable and complicated talks will delay, the more they will return. Meet the 30 most common mistakes of entrepreneurs.
3. Businesses are not a democracy:
Since they were children, they taught us to share and make commitments with our friends. They also taught us that democracy is the fairest way to govern, however, I have a piece of news: a business is not a kindergarten or a country, justice is not a priority for startups. And less is when you want to start a business with your friends.
“Benevolent Dictator” is a much more accurate job description of what a CEO should be. When you are starting a business there is no time to make all the decisions together. You have to take control and keep moving forward every day. It is easy to put all decisions to a vote, but this ends up being a waste of time. Startups must remain agile avoiding bureaucracy.
4. New and different perspectives are crucial:
It is very likely that you have much in common with your friends. Similar experiences and personalities are solid bases for a good friendship, but they can cause problems from a business perspective.
If one of the founders ignores something, it is very likely that his founding friend also ignores it. This is why you have to make sure that the first contracts are from people who can bring new skills, points of view and different ideas.
5. It is convenient to include everyone in the talk:
When you’re starting a business with your friends, your social life becomes a catalyst for innovation. A significant part of innovation sessions will happen outside the office, on weekends, at a dinner or in a bar with your friends.
This is a great advantage for you and your team, but you must be careful not to exclude the new team members. This would be counterproductive for the work environment and innovation.
Finally, here is a sixth gift lesson: Starting a business with your friends is worth it. Creating something from nothing and helping to grow it is a fantastic experience, and it is even better when you can do it next to people who genuinely like you.
It is not always easy, and sometimes strengths as friends can be weaknesses as a company, but if they are aware of that and plan intelligently, they will have all the tools to achieve success.
“Entrepbusiness” also recommended you to read this article: 3 Tips to start a successful business with your partner
