How Business And Family Can (and Does) Mix Well

It is an oft repeated phrase that you should never mix business with pleasure. This idiom is extended to include doing business with friends and family and it is held to be as true as never talking about religion and politics with people whom you wish to remain friends. But the truth is, family businesses are alive and prospering every day in this country, and there is no reason why you and your family can’t enjoy the same success. And you can do it without wanting to tear each other’s heads off. Here are some benefits to working with your family to create a great business.

People like to see family owned and operated businesses. The phrase “Mom and Pop store” came into the American lexicon due to the country’s fondness for these small businesses run by and started by families. There is something wholesome, valuable, and American about these operations, and their success is not necessarily limited to the corner grocery. After all, Wal-Mart began as a family business and it is now the most successful retailer in the world. Whether right or wrong, people automatically perceive a family owned business as being a bit more trustworthy than their corporate counterparts. They feel as though each purchase is helping to support something important to the community. You can, for lack of a better word, exploit these feelings with your own family run business.

While there is always the danger of too much of a good thing, a family run business can give you the opportunity to incorporate plenty of quality family time within the boundaries of your career. Most people are not so fortunate. With today’s world demanding more time than ever from its employees, many American families are lucky to spend any quality time at all together. With a business run as a family, you can sidestep this unfortunate aspect of modern American life.

Perhaps most importantly of all, a successful family business can mean a future of security for your children and grandchildren. While it is true that each person makes their own decisions in life, with a little luck at least one of your kids will aspire to take over the business and run it with their family in the future. This is a way of presenting a legacy for your kids and your kids’s kids.

So while holidays may be stressful and you may not always agree with your brother in law about which team is going to the Super Bowl this year, a family owned business does not have to be all about arguments and stress. It can be a wonderful opportunity to enjoy something that is disappearing all too rapidly from American society. Perhaps your business will do more than simply provide an income for you and your loved ones. Maybe you will inspire others to follow the same path.