Wealth Nation » Working http://wealthnation.fm From Dependent to Independent...We Shall Be Free! Tue, 08 Jun 2010 01:05:38 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 Woopra's CEO John P. and GeekBrief.TV's Cali Lewis and Neal Campbell bring you a show about making the most of your personal and professional life. Wealth Nation no Wealth Nation cali@wealthnation.fm cali@wealthnation.fm (Wealth Nation) 2009 From Dependent to Independent...We Shall Be Free! wealth, business, finance, marketing, advertising, work, investment, advice, startup, Wealth Nation » Working http://wealthnation.fm/wp-content/themes/arthemia-premium/images/WN-album-art144.png http://wealthnation.fm/category/working/ Rules and Tips For Working With Family http://wealthnation.fm/entrepreneurs/rules-and-tips-for-working-with-family/ http://wealthnation.fm/entrepreneurs/rules-and-tips-for-working-with-family/#comments Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:46:43 +0000 John P. http://wealthnation.fm/?p=594

Family PhotoWe got the following question from Robin Lees on Twitter, so I thought that the three of us would take a shot at an answer but even more importantly, we’re really looking to get the feedback of the Nation on this one!

@WealthNation are there any rules and tips that should be considered about going into business with family (Cali & Neal)?

Cali says:

  • Some people have the type of personality that allows them to just get along with others. But if you have difficulty working together with your relative outside of business, then this will really magnify the problems. Make absolutely sure that you are all going to be able to tolerate one another all the time.
  • Keep in mind that when hiring you normally would go through an interview and vetting process, but we skip that with family members. You may be missing a more qualified candidate this way, which ultimately can impact your business.

Neal says:

Eat more bacon.

John says:

I would extend the question to include friends, since they are often as close to us as our family. And I’d offer the following advice:

  • Working with Family or Friends strips you of some power you’d otherwise have with real employees. You lose the ability to “be the bad guy” when you need to, and certain threats no longer exist. So you often end up needing a lot more carrots because you haven’t got much of a stick.
  • Friends and family can also make an organization stronger because you don’t have to worry about loyalty, churn, or whether there are competing interests. Having everyone in the same boat ensures that they’re all rowing in the right direction.
  • In almost every case I’ve seen, working together induces some stress. So everyone needs to be extra considerate.

But enough with our answers, we need to hear your experience! Please drop a comment below and let’s really tackle this question! By the way, David Javich has a few tips over at Entrepreneur.com to consider as well.

PS – Thanks to SuZenDu for the photo!

DeliciousStumbleUponDiggTwitterMixxTechnoratiFacebookNews VineRedditLinkedInYahoo! BookmarksSphinn It!

Other Articles

]]> http://wealthnation.fm/entrepreneurs/rules-and-tips-for-working-with-family/feed/ 12