Here’s a great list of highly regrettable mistakes made by a Angel-funded first time entrepreneur from LendingClub.

This are just the bullet-points. Read the whole entry.

1) I Managed People like Michael Scott from “The Office”.

2) I Hired My Friends.

3) I Budgeted Like Britney Spears: Terribly.

4) I Leased A Fancy Office While My Large Basement Went Unused.

5) I Raised Money Before I Had Customers.

6) I Mixed Business with Pleasure.

7) I Assumed Everything Would Go According to Plan.

As an aside, it’s possible to hire friends, and it can be great … BUT, do not enter in such a relationship lightly. Think of it as getting married to you friend and be ready to all the advance on on-going work a marriage requires, because if it doesn’t work out it feels like you are divocrcing your friend … and that sucks.

Here are some more additions/refinements I posted where I originally read it.

* Get books on managing people and read them

* If you dare hire friends, make sure you understand each others expectations to a ‘t’ and check-in often.

* Spend as if you have to manage your business on your own means

* Prove your business model early

* Don’t define yourself by what your start-up is. Keep yourself intact.