Hire a VA, or Hire a friend I know?

Gambit

Gambit

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Nov 21, 2011
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So I'm trying to decide which route is the best to go with this. I'm at a point where I can use some extra help on some of the projects I'm working on.

I've told my friend about what I do, and he is pretty interested. Right now he is working a part time job that isn't paying very well and has came to me and asked if he can work for me.

He looks up to me and he's a pretty good and consistent worker, which is what I'm looking for right now. He's got a degree in web design, but he really doesn't have much skill in that area. He worked at a company that does web design and SEO but got laid off and he never really learned how to do any SEO, just mostly admin work. This doesn't really concern me though cause I know I can teach him whatever I need done.

Basically what I need is someone to do some admin work and I can use him for some article writing right now (which he said he'd like to do), but I might have some more needs in the future.

I guess my question is, would it be a headache hiring him compared to a VA? I can probably pay him around $8/hr, but that's a lot less than a VA. I don't really know much about the paperwork or other areas that go into it. He just brought this up recently and I haven't had a chance to look into it.

Obviously, I can get on his case if he's not doing something right a lot easier than a VA. And I can get him to write some articles for this other project I've been working toward getting off the ground.

Anyways, what are your thoughts about hiring someone you know VS hiring a VA?
 


I just started working with a good friend of mine last week. In fact he is sitting in my office right now grinding. While I need the help for different areas of my biz I still think its better to work with someone you can trust and train vs a VA you have to constantly monitor.
 
If you are hiring him as an employee, then he is probably better than a VA.

If you are hiring him as a contractor, then you should stick with a VA.
 
Good points. I can definitely find work for him to do full time. I think having someone that is a native English speaker and is someone I know and trust definitely has it's advantages.
 
My personal experience...go with a Virtual Assistant or hire someone locally you don't know.

If your friend isn't cut out for the job, it's REALLY hard to fire him or let him go. I'm a tough person to work with, and it isn't worth potentially ruining a friendship when I can easily hire others.

As for trust, lets just say it goes out the fucking window when you start doing 5 figures a day.
 
Dr_Ngo said:
My personal experience...go with a Virtual Assistant or hire someone locally you don't know.

If your friend isn't cut out for the job, it's REALLY hard to fire him or let him go. I'm a tough person to work with, and it isn't worth potentially ruining a friendship when I can easily hire others.

As for trust, lets just say it goes out the fucking window when you start doing 5 figures a day.
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Isn't he just like a real doctor? So wise.
 
Gambit said:
Good points. I can definitely find work for him to do full time. I think having someone that is a native English speaker and is someone I know and trust definitely has it's advantages.
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It has its advantages. One of the disadvantages are that youre probably going to lose a friend. If thats not an issue, go for it.
 
Never, ever hire friends. fucking every. If things go south, it will ruin your relationship with them, unless you have a truly solid understanding. Slowly but surely they will start crossing lines, here and there, and you have to stop that shit immediately, otherwise you are sitting duck.

Jack L. Warner: [to Albert Einstein] I have a theory of relativity, too. I never hire them.
 
Hired a good friend of mine, things are going well. He respects me and the business though and is an overall great guy, which is the main reason I hired him. There are some friends I wouldn't hire of course. Use your best judgement on this one.
 
In general I agree that hiring friends is a bad idea but there are people that are an exception to that rule.

For instance, I have friends I've known almost my entire life who I can count on for anything that do very well for themselves in their own lines of work. If I were to hire one of them, I'm sure they would take the job very seriously and not fuck off all the time just because of our personal history. Then again they would be way too fucking expensive.

VA.
 
I have mixed feelings on that too and I think it depends on how strong your friendship is.
Propably the worst thing that could happen is that he gets jealous and your friendship suffers.
 
I had a friend that needed a job and it worked out great, but I already knew what his work ethic was like. He'd get done all the work I'd want done in week in a couple days and I never had to micromanage him. He now wants to do what I do and I hope he succeeds in it so he can give his family a better life.

If your friend decides to eventually go out on his own don't take it as a personal insult, because it's not. Anyone worth a damn that you hire will eventually want to go out on their own.
 
Thanks for the advice everyone. Yeah I hear what you are saying about potentially losing a friend. He's a good kid and I know he wouldn't want to lose me as a friend if I had to end up letting him go. He would just get extremely depressed because he wants to be seen as a good worker.

I told him not to quit his job or anything drastic. I know he's a consistent worker and a good kid. I'm gonna give him a couple tasks and pay him for what he completes for now and take it from there.

One potential problem I can see is him wanting to be making as much as I'm making. He has a ballpark idea, but I should probably keep my earning numbers away from his eyes.
 
Gambit said:
Thanks for the advice everyone. Yeah I hear what you are saying about potentially losing a friend. He's a good kid and I know he wouldn't want to lose me as a friend if I had to end up letting him go. He would just get extremely depressed because he wants to be seen as a good worker.

I told him not to quit his job or anything drastic. I know he's a consistent worker and a good kid. I'm gonna give him a couple tasks and pay him for what he completes for now and take it from there.

One potential problem I can see is him wanting to be making as much as I'm making. He has a ballpark idea, but I should probably keep my earning numbers away from his eyes.
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Tell him up front it's not steady work so he shouldn't depend on it. If that's really the situation. It's also none of his business what you make and you shouldn't tell him. If he already knows what you make that doesn't mean you have to update him again on the status of it. If he's a real friend he shouldn't be jealous of you. I have friends that earn 100x more than me and I'm happy for them. Would I like to be where they are? Sure, but that doesn't mean I have to be jealous of them.
 
crackp0t said:
If your friend decides to eventually go out on his own don't take it as a personal insult, because it's not. Anyone worth a damn that you hire will eventually want to go out on their own.
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Agreed. Help people grow. Why do you think Guerilla gives so much of his time to others?

Gambit said:
One potential problem I can see is him wanting to be making as much as I'm making. He has a ballpark idea, but I should probably keep my earning numbers away from his eyes.
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Help him get to that point. Think about it - You train him, he starts banking, goes off on his own, and stacks some serious cheddar. At what point do the two of you partner on an equal playing field ($ and knowledge) to build an empire as partners?

Sure it can get bad, but taking risks is half the reason why Im in biz for myself - Its one hell of a rush.
 
Follow the advise. Do not hire your friend, unless you want to end your friendship very soon. Hire a VA. It's more cost-efficient and their dedication, hard work, and quality output is already proven.
 
ANOMOANON said:
Agreed. Help people grow. Why do you think Guerilla gives so much of his time to others?



Help him get to that point. Think about it - You train him, he starts banking, goes off on his own, and stacks some serious cheddar. At what point do the two of you partner on an equal playing field ($ and knowledge) to build an empire as partners?

Sure it can get bad, but taking risks is half the reason why Im in biz for myself - Its one hell of a rush.
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I definitely am all about helping others. That part isn't really an issue. I'm honestly not sure if he would be capable of handling a business himself, but potentially he could a couple years down the line. I think I'm gonna give him a chance starting Monday and see how it goes.
 
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