We encourage prospective members to join a branch together with their existing strategic partners, as well as business professionals they know with a close personal tie (friend, family, etc.). Joining with business professionals to whom you have an extremely high level of loyalty is crucial. This has nothing to do with any desire the organization has to grow membership. The singular purpose for this stipulation is the conflict created if there is someone in your branch, particularly natural affinity/strategic partners, that you would never support due to existing personal and professional obligations. Member conflicts that would make it impossible to support a branch member for any reason destroy the integrity of the group. We respectfully request that this tenet of trust, respect and a caring, family like bond is the spirit in which members join a branch.
Likewise, conflict with a prospective branch member where personal or professional opinions of a branch member make it either unlikely, or impossible to support another member is destructive to the organization’s core values and the deep bond that connects the branch members. In these circumstances we ask that prospective members join another branch.
