My friends and I are working on starting a business. While I am excited about this new opportunity, I am also nervous about the fact that it could put stress on our friendship. I certainly don’t want to lose any friendships because of a business deal, but at the same time I’m excited about the thought of working with people I love on a project I’m passionate about.

The Basics

We are five friends, spread throughout the country. We each have completely different jobs and bring many different skills to the table. Our idea is to launch an online business, selling a limited number of products that focus around a tradition that we have had for nearly a decade. (I know I’m being vague, but I have to be at this point!)

The Pros:

Because there are five of us, the workload should be lighter. We can each handle different business tasks and we are able to juggle it with our other jobs. It also means less risk because each of us only has to bring about $500 to the table. Our business will have no debt. The business will give us each something to dream about, get excited about and ultimately will allow us to help other groups of women.

The Cons:

We are friends first, business partners second. While I may be more entrepreneurial, other members of the group are afraid of the risk and seem to be dwelling on it. Some members of the group have skills that really benefit the business, while others do not. This could be magnified down the road while some of the women feel they’re taking on a larger share of the workload while getting the same return.

Have you ever started a business with friends? Would you ever own a business with friends?