One of the most positive aspects of family businesses is often their ongoing commitment to principles; nearly 60% of family businesses believe that their ethics are more rigorous than those of competing firms. This commitment to making sound decisions or choosing solid principles often helps such businesses thrive through challenges and grow as companies.

Trust Your Compass, Not the Market

Trusting my gut instead of chasing whatever was trending ended up being the anchor. Any time things got wobbly–money stress, creative blocks, the emotional messiness that comes with running a family business–I’d circle back to the reason I started in the first place: helping women feel powerful in their softness. That’s the compass that’s never failed me.

I’ve also learned not to budge on feeling. I’d rather put out a smaller collection that carries real intention than hurry after whatever’s moving quickly in the market. Our clients pick up on that. They’re not just buying clothes; they’re choosing how they want to feel in their own skin.

Julia Pukhalskaia, CEO, Mermaid Way

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Choose Trust Over Short-Term Gains

Looking back, the single most crucial principle that helped our family business navigate many challenges and grow was choosing to foster trust over quick wins. We made decisions with a view into the distance, which often meant slower growth and more complex conversations. That consistency built credibility with customers, partners, and employees, which carried us through difficult times. When people trust how you operate, they stay with you through changing conditions, and stability creates room to grow.

Rafael Sarim Oezdemir, Head of Growth, EZContacts

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Put Family First, Give Grace for Mistakes

Probably the principle that no matter what happens, we’re family first. If someone makes a mistake, it’s only human and we do our best to help them out. We had family members go bankrupt, get arrested, fined for DUI and a bunch of other small and big things over the years. When someone makes a mistake, it doesn’t make them less of a brother, aunt or mom. We help each other and see each other as human beings with all our flaws and good sides.

Daniel Kroytor, CEO, TailoredPay

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Anchor Succession and Decisions in Values

The values-based succession is the most important principle that helped my family business endure challenges and grow. The decision motivates us to work diligently to build a profitable business rather than produce poor work. We have a simple family constitution with clear rules for all family members, from younger to older, that balances the work system and helps us make the right decisions. The growth of our family business stems from our commitment not to allow even minor frustrations to escalate into problematic situations within our family, thereby preventing adventurous behaviour and loss. We also have a culture of family meetings with refreshing morning and evening tea, where we used to provide candid reviews and make decisions regarding business development. These are the essential plans and principles that help my family business deal with challenges effectively and promote growth.

Dhari Alabdulhadi, CTO and Founder, Ubuy Peru

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Set Firm Boundaries Between Family and Business

The game changer for me at Dirty Dough Cookies was figuring out how to wear two hats – family member and business partner. When we started growing fast with cousins and siblings on the team, things got messy. We made a simple rule: no shop talk during Sunday dinner, and business stays in business hours. Suddenly everyone relaxed more at work and at home. If you’re mixing family and business, draw that line early.

Bennett Maxwell, CEO, Franchise KI

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Stick to Your Taste, Not Trends

We kept Japantastic going by stopping the chase for trends and only selling things from Japan we actually liked and used ourselves. We picked everything ourselves and checked the quality, so when customers pointed out what was missing, we could adjust fast. For any family business, my advice is simple: stick with your original idea and don’t try to make everyone happy.

Falah Putras, Owner, Japantastic

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Serve People First, Referrals Follow

At NOLA Buys Houses, we learned one thing fast. A seller once needed to close in three days, so my whole family stayed up until 2 AM handling paperwork. It was a pain, but that client sent us three new ones. Forget the big plans. Just take care of people, and they remember you.

Carl Fanaro, President, NOLA Buys Houses

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Rely on Systems When Pressure Mounts

Our family business made it through the tough times because we had our systems down. When the market changed or competition heated up, we didn’t panic. We just stuck to the plan. On overwhelming days, that simple checklist was the only thing that kept us moving forward, our guide when nothing else made sense.

Akash GR, Founder, Senior Services Directory

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Lead With Candor, Especially in Crisis

Running a family law firm, the hard part isn’t the law, it’s the family. When a tough case gets stressful, you have to be brutally direct. We learned that telling clients the bad news upfront, even when they don’t want to hear it, works better than anything. Being straight with each other, even when it’s uncomfortable, is how we stopped fighting and kept our clients. That’s the only approach that actually lasts.

Ramiro Lluis, Managing Attorney, Lluis Law

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Adapt Fast, Never Compromise on Quality

For our family’s contracting business, the whole thing is staying flexible but not losing what we stand for. What worked last year might not work this year. We started using some new apps for scheduling jobs, which helped a lot. I always tell people to listen to what your crews and customers are actually saying. You have to be willing to change things up, but the work still has to be right. That balance has worked for us.

Joseph Melara, Chief Operating Officer, Truly Tough Contractors

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Use Disciplined Profit Allocation for Stability

For our family business, the most important principle has been disciplined profit allocation. We reinvest in new equipment and upgrades at the start and end of each year, while prioritizing savings and personal distributions in the middle of the year. This protects a healthy savings buffer during uncertain periods and ensures steady resources for growth.

Evan McCarthy, President and CEO, SportingSmiles

About Our Contributor

Lindsey Flagg is a professional content creator with a passion for writing, music, and making the world a better place. She holds a B.A. in Communication from Purdue University and has over 12 years of experience in digital communications. In her free time, she enjoys language learning, reading, and discovering new music.

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