Having business partners and co-founders can obviously turn into a nightmare but…having the right co-founders for your startup can be the key to your success!
Teamwork is very important nowadays and for that you must learn to trust others, not only because they might have money to invest in your startup, but because they can add real value to the company and, therefore, drive profits for all sides.
Key questions to answer when looking for a co-founder for your startup are:
- Do you share personal and professional values and goals?
- Do you trust your partner’s character?
- In what areas of everyday life do you disagree with him or her?
- Will you be efficient enough to run the business if you partner suddenly decides to exit?
Learn to share!
Even if you are leading a team of partners, you must learn to feel good with the fact that these people will do things their own way! This is normal, but it is not always easy to get used to!
Different specialities work better!
It is better to choose business partners with different specialities, rather than finding the ones with a profile similar to you. Your company will benefit from this a lot more, while you will be saving from outsourcing costs (hiring a marketing consultant, for example).
Avoid the family!
Starting a startup means that it is possible you might fail. You don’t want your family to fail with you!
The 3Fs
You would, of course, prefer to avoid having your family work with you in this new endeavor. But receiving this first validation that someone believes in what you do is equally important. Here’s where the 3Fs come into the picture.
Friends, family and fools (3Fs), as per the old adage, are the first people to believe in you. And if they can spare up to 5% of their liquid assets in a way that it makes sense in helping you get started, then why not? If you happen to fail, it will not be destructive for them. And you won’t have to feel bad about it.
However, this first validation when someone elects to invest in what you do, means a lot for you and your team. It means someone believes in you!
