You may have heard growing up as I did that mixing business and family relationships can be a recipe for disaster.

It's a fact, however, that entrepreneurs, particularly bootstrappers, seeking to avoid more conventional outside funding, have often used this form of financing successfully.

CircleLending, a company specializing in the management of personal loans, suggests that there are benefits to both borrowers and lenders in this relationship and that family problems connected to the loans can be avoided with proper planning.

Read the company's 16 page PDF document here or from the link at the Kauffman Foundation's bootstrap resource website to see if the option might be right for you.