Spring Is In The Air

“Spring adds new life and new beauty to all that is.”
— Jessica Harrelson

Welcome to March! Spring is in the air! What a wonderful thing to step into when we've just wrapped up the season of love.

My brothers and I together with our spouses have been doing business together since 2003, when we started a real estate investment company. None of us had any real estate investing knowledge beyond purchasing our personal homes and maybe renting out previous homes we owned. However, what has made that business work is the fact that we all had different strengths that we brought to the table and we trusted one another to do the right things in business.

Since that time, we've invested in a number of properties. While we've hit some bumps in the road along the way, doing business with one another has been wonderful. There has been someone in our group who has been able to pick up the pieces when necessary and keep the wheels in motion.

One comment we received during our LIVE discussion was, working with family can be a great opportunity or a very bad relationship. They are absolutely correct. However, it's all in what you make it. Doing business with family is like doing business in any other relationship. All parties have to agree to a unified objective, they have to establish parameters of control and decision making, and they have to establish agreeable methods of exiting when the time comes.

We've done all of those things. While our initial objectives of investing in properties has evolved, we established written agreements in the very beginning and we've done a great job of holding one another accountable. This does not mean we agree 100% of the time. What it does mean though is that we have accountability measures in place that break down barriers and help us continue moving forward with the mission.

If you are interested in doing business with your family, here are a few success tips we have for you.

1. Establish a formal Operating Agreement which outlines responsibilities of each partner, determines how a deciding vote is made, and who the responsible parties are to making financial commitments for the business.
2. Establish a strategic plan for the overall business which addresses the key underlying themes and purpose of the business. Make this the plan that everyone comes back to when making major decisions for the business.
3. Establish a financial plan which include how each individual will invest in the business at varying times and how and when profits will be distributed to each owner.
4. Commit to having formal business meetings to assess performance and readdress and realign with the strategic plan.
5. Agree not to take business decisions personally. If you follow the road map that's established for the business then your decisions are not personal, they are business.

I am looking forward to the road ahead. We established that business as a means to build value and wealth for our children. Now that our children are adults or approaching adulthood, it's exciting to now consider bringing them into the investment fold. Building legacies means creating sustainable assets that live for generations. This asset we've built is doing just that.