4 Ways to Maintain a Healthy Relationship With Your CoFounder
Starting a company is a difficult long path not to walk alone. Of course, you can create it largely on your own, but starting a business with one or more cofounder increases the likelihood of achievement, particularly when they complement the skill sets of each other.
The quality of the relationship shared among you and your cofounder is one of the most important elements and the future success of your startup often depends on maintaining a healthy and harmonious relationship with your business partner. It is less business and more like a marriage where that demands open and honest communication with implicit trust in almost every way possible. Forming a partnership, in the beginning, is challenging, but what is more challenging is to keep a good relationship alive and thriving along the startup journey.
Here are some significant points to keep in mind that strengthen your relationship with your cofounder.
Be honest with your partners / cofounder
It’s no surprise that many of the reasons for companies falling apart are related to founder disputes and loss of trust between cofounders. If you can’t trust your business partner, you better walk away right now. It will keep on getting just harder to separate the longer you’re in business together.
truth hurts, but not discussing both of your shortcomings and strengths can lead to an avoidance of issues that may become more severe as the company grows. You’ve got to be honest with your partner. In the dearth of honesty, you won’t be able to get anything done.
Valuable Communication between cofounders
Keeping things to yourself is not gonna work as every issue is of utmost importance, so share away. It helps in growing your bond as well. By letting go of your ego asks “Have I done anything to piss you off, confuse you or annoy you that created any form of stress or negativity in your life?”
No matter how silly it seems, we would address it immediately. You have to build the ultimate trust with your cofounder and proactively talk about concerns, problems and personal feelings.
Make time for each other away office
If you have a cofounder, then they are one of the few people who uniquely understand what you’re going through, so spend time with them. Dedicating focused time paves the way for a great collaboration. Get dinner, or play or any non-work-related event.
To nurture your cofounder relationships, identify a common passion and then schedule a time for regular outings where you can get away from the stresses of the office for a few hours. Forming of these habits early would be important, and as we grew and scaled the business, these habits would stay with us forever. Just sit for some time and have a conversation and tell each other about what’s going on in your lives.
Embrace conflicts and disagreements between cofounder
Having a diverse cofounder partner is a good thing, but it could also be a potential source of friction unless you learn to accept each other the way you are. Each of you has to build trust that both of you are in it for the right reasons. That way, when a decision is made and it’s one you don’t agree with, you can get on board with the whole team and don’t undermine your cofounder.
A difference in opinions can open the door to critical thinking about topics that can have a huge impact on the business. Talk rationally and respectfully about the issue at hand to ensure you and your partner ultimately get on the same page and reach an agreement that is best for the company moving forward. Remember not to take these disagreements personally. Your cofounder isn’t attacking your character, they are taking a stand because they care deeply about the future of the company, just like you. Once a decision has been made, make your peace with it and move on.
Having a good companion makes the travel easier whether it be a journey to a destination in life or in entrepreneurship. A good working space, an honest cofounder in the team and a solid idea can definitely move mountains.
