Choosing a business partner could be the 2nd most important relationship you ever choose (after who you marry.)
I just got out of a 5-year partnership that had become toxic.
Here's where I went wrong.
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1. If business partnership was like marriage, I'd married someone that I'd only been on a few dates with and barely knew.
I partnered out of insecurity with someone who talked a good game and seemed strong in the areas I felt weak.
This insecurity cost me $$$
2. Questions I wished I had asked before taking on a partner:
- What are my goals for this business?
- What are my strengths and weaknesses?
- What parts of starting/building this business am I the most unsure about?
- What might my perfect partner look like?
3. Qualities to look for in a business partner:
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Financially sensible & secure
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Shared vision & goals
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Emotionally intelligent (high eq > high iq)
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High integrity
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Similar work ethic
4. How to split equity
50/50 isnβt a business decision, itβs a settlement.
Itβs a common way to decide equity splits because a down-the-middle split seems 'fair'. However, it's also lazy and more often than not is a bad deal for one person, and gets worse the longer it goes on