Managing Friendships in Business

Nice people become friends with each other. Its an inevitable part of our world. If you're not a jerk, and I'm not a jerk, we will, at the very least, enjoy spending time together.

Most people in this world are not jerks. So when you go into business with people, the likelihood is that, if you were not already friends, you will quickly become such.

And then what happens if the business goes sour? If the root of your friendship is a third entity driven by myriad factors, it's a high stakes kind of friendship. A lot can go wrong in a startup. Actually, most things seem to go wrong in a startup. And navigating a successful friendship through this foamy sea is an immense challenge.

Which do you value more, the business or the friendship? If one came before the other (you started a business with your friend, or you became friends with your business partner), how does that affect your answer? To which do you owe the duty of care?

And this gets further convoluted when there is a partnership of three, and you find yourself in the middle of the war.

I suppose that's why life gets to be so long. So you have the chance to lose businesses, lose friendships, and try to make it all up again later.