Never choose these 8 types of people as start-up partners

Starting a business is a trend irrespective of age and majority, everyone understands that "monogamy, monopoly" means a great possibility will fail. For this reason, the need to find co-founders or start-up partners is growing - to increase initial funding or support each other in skills lacking - all need a careful plan.

Many successful entrepreneurs now have almost perfect partners, Sergey Brin - Larry Page and Google , Mark Zuckerberg and 4 other co-founders and Facebook. All partners once united will share success and challenges in the business process; At the same time, it is this linkage that will also create powerful leverage that helps startups stand up to all waves.

See more:

1. Starting a business: 4 things to remember when conflicts occur between members of the founding group
2. According to CB Insights, here are 20 reasons why startups fail
3. Find Co-founder to start your business, choose someone who has these 7 qualities

However, besides the characteristics of an ideal partner such as common vision, personality, different skills, sympathy, sharing, each entrepreneur when looking for companions should understand well. A few other important factors - are the signs to identify someone who is not a Co-founder. Knowing those points, you will easily focus on the people you need to find more.

Here are 8 signs that a person is not the ideal partner you are looking for.

1. People only speak without acting

There are 3 types of people in the world: (1) people who speak or do well, (2) who do not know how to speak but their actions are wonderful and (3) those who speak well but do bad things Well, even just talking and not doing. Number 3 is the most dangerous type of entrepreneurs that entrepreneurs need to avoid when looking for co-founders.

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People who talk a lot - doing bad things will make you believe that things are going well, that all are under control and if not lucky enough to be caught up in these "secret" words, soon You will realize that you are a real fool.

In a conversation with a potential partner, make sure you have a good look at the profile or CV and let them specifically present the projects, projects or business deals they have been involved with. At the same time, do not rush to believe what they say to avoid being "shocked" after confirming.

During the Internet era that dominates information, everything seems to be available. Therefore, when searching online, there is almost no data about them, be wary. Any "brilliant" achievement needs to be thoroughly examined and you should be the one to do it.

Twitter, Linkedin, Facebook, Blog, YouTube, personal website or just a small line mention their name in the newspaper, you must pay attention.

2. The person does not have a consistent personality

Starting a business is always a potential risk. Therefore, there is no resource, even time allowed to waste. If your partner is unstable and inconsistent, resources will not be allocated appropriately once they are in control.

It doesn't matter if you have the resources to "waste", sometimes you need to accept investment, especially the improvement process. However, in the early stages of starting a business, focusing on one or two of the most important issues is essential if you want to move on.

You can check this out by looking at your partner's profile. Will they "jump" in a short time? If yes, contact the reference to confirm and make a final decision.

3. People with poor communication ability

The world is large and there is no shortage of people who make you unhappy. Your partner is a foreigner, has more capital or has more professional skills than you do, it does not mean they are allowed to shout directly to you in front of a crowded or loud meeting.

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There is nothing worse when disagreements between founders start up. Because it will be an omen for bad things that happen after that.

Also, if you choose the wrong co-founder - who acts unprofessionally, doesn't treat everyone well and most of the employees don't like him, obviously, you've chosen the wrong partner.

To know who is your true companion, give someone who has been chosen a month of probationary time. During this time, you can monitor, observe, receive feedback from employees, use performance indicators (KPIs) and work directly with them to decide whether are they the person you are looking for.

4. People who are unable to work in groups

Lack of social skills is one thing, not being able to work in groups is another thing to discuss carefully. Starting a business requires a close connection of all members of the founding department. You are looking for a companion to build a team of superstars, not to produce a movie - where everyone plays "Good cop, bad cop".

Good cop / Bad cop is a technique that police often use when they want to take the true testimony of a criminal. Specifically, if two police officers "play" Good cop / Bad cop with someone, one will show sympathy, friendliness (Good cop), while the other person will appear very aggressive and angry. Bad (Bad cop).

An excellent partner in hard skills but proved to lack cooperation with team members, refused to listen, conservative, proved indifferent to the tasks that require community, you need to reconsider Their position in the founding board. Such a person can hardly walk on the same road.

5. People have too many other concerns

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There is nothing difficult to understand when many people have several investment projects at the same time. However, once you decide to join a startup, what each person needs to understand is that the willingness to sacrifice and focus is the core factor to make a result. If you accept a person who joins two or three start-up teams, you need to anticipate all risks ahead.

6. The person with "me" is too big

Everyone has their own "me" and talent, the "me" will often be visible. You have to accept this, however, does not mean that you should cooperate with a talented person with too big "ego".

People with "me" too big will often make a team difficult to make the final and consistent decision. Because they always try to protect their views and try to find every reason to prove what others say is wrong. In critical situations such as purchasing, handling customer complaints or media crises, a delay or irrelevance in the decision will be a sign that the startup is at risk of failure.

7. People like "50 - 50"

There are many types of partners. In it, a type is called "money partner" - willing to invest capital in everything, another is "working partner" - ready to do everything and the last type is "equal partner" - who always wants to Clearly divide money - time - work. In any case, such a "50 - 50" partner is always the wrong choice to "kill" your entrepreneurial dream.

60/40 or 52/48 are fine but never choose 50-50. The same rate is the "formula" that makes startup failures in the long term. You need to find someone who is excellent in control, responsible and able to make the final decision. Even in football, there is always a competent person who is bigger than the teams on the field and that is the referee. If everyone accepts equal rights and sacrifices, no one will compromise to make decisions.

The founding team needs someone to head and have a voice.

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Kathleen King - a startup with the idea of ​​opening a bakery in Southampton (NY) is an example. After the business achieved certain successes, she decided to leave her two brothers as partners with a share of 33.33%. However, not long after, the two brothers joined together and "kicked" King out of the company she created.

8. People always agree with everything you say

In the 8 types of partners listed in this article, this is the most dangerous type of partner. It would be great if someone agreed with you, however, this is also a potential risk, a "deadly trap" that startups need to pay attention to. Because, you will easily believe that everything is always on the right track and no one comes to reassess ideas and action plans.

It is called this "bias confirmation" (the scantling error seeks to support evidence of a certain clause, and then assumes that the clause is true).

Don't look for people who have the right skills. Look for people who can help you improve the qualities you don't have. If you are good at content creation, look for an excellent partner in marketing - communications - advertising. If you are good at sales skills, find partners who can create the best products. That is the foundation for starting a business.

In the opposite direction, you should not agree with everything that the partner said.The rule is that when everyone in the room agrees with a problem, there must always be at least one person who is willing to make counter-opinions.

Summary:

Start a business like you are at the foot of a mountain and prepare to climb a towering mountain peak. You can only minimize the risk of finding a companion who can help you gain more motivation, confidence and support each other in the process of reaching the final goal.