When it comes to money you probably want the biggest piece of the pie if not the whole pie. There is nothing wrong with it and I would even go as far as saying that if your first instinct isn’t to obtain the full pie then there is something wrong.
However, because of this attitude it seems that many people are running their businesses solo these days. It could end up working out for you but here are some reasons why you may want to consider finding a business partner:
1. Being solo all the time can get depressing, especially when you are starting out. Having a business partner will allow you to motivate each other and hopefully keep the business moving forward at a rapid pace.
2. You are not a jack-of-all-trades, so you need to find someone who can fill in where you lack. Just look at Shoemoney and Dillsmack. Shoe is a great marketer and Dillsmack is a great programmer. Because they both specialize in what they do best, they are able to crank out successful products like AuctionAds,
3. Networking is one of the things that is necessary for most businesses to be successful. Even if you are extremely talented, knowing other people that can help you is essential. The great thing about bringing in a business partner is that they may have a new network that you can tap into to grow your business.
4. What you think is a killer idea may not be a smart idea. If you are running a business solo, you are more likely to do stupid things since you don’t always have somebody you trust and believe to run things by. With a business partner you can both bounce ideas off of each other and figure out what is really worth pursuing.
5. Timing is essential when it comes to success. A good way to get things out faster is to add employees, but when you are starting out this can be expensive. For this reason it is wise to add a business partner so that you can get things out faster.
Hopefully this helps convince you that you need a business partner. If you have a business partner, care to share how you have found it valuable or invaluable?
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{ 45 comments… read them below or add one }
Excellent post once again Neil. Keep up the great work and I will definitely try to get a business partner.
I started solo, and merged with another single man company a couple years ago. Revenue is up about 1000% in two years and it certainly makes life easier. No doubt a partner makes very good business sense.
Good post. Other than AuctionAds, there’s also the BelowABuck venture, as an example.
Nice post…but it is much less of a pain to just be your own business partner!
Good suggestion, however I prefer to outsource instead of having a partner
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Developing synergy is generally a winning strategy, especially since idea generation in a group is exponential, not linear! A word to the wise: If your partnership is anything more than simple collaberation, put it all in writing.
Motivating post!;)
Getting a partner is the easy part, dumping the partner when things go wrong is the hard pert. It can be a risky game to get into.
Great Post – and I agree with most – but the problem remains – where to FIND a great business partner! I have been scouring certain sites and freelance boards – but it is rare to be able to find someone in this fashion. I with there was a better way…
Taking on business partners is serious business, but necessary.
Don’t settle on an average or mediocre one or it’ll kill you in time.
my business partner for many years was my brother. what you say is true. but it doesn’t always work when there’s not enough money to go around.
i am currenly solo. i am a programmer. i cant design. i always outsource designing stuff.
it is definitely great to have a business partner, however it is extremely hard to find… one that you can trust. when someone come to you with a proposal, usually they are out to take advantage of you more than benefits you. at the moment, my ideal business partner will be my family members.
I’m looking for someone to team up. If anyone wants to talk about partnership, contact me: chris at alexanderonlinemedia dot com
or AOL IM:
n2oHonda
its amazing that i was thinking about this very thing this week. unfortunetly, in my last partnership I was burned – i did all the work while my partner tried to become the ‘face’ of the business…not my idea of a good partnership and since then i’ve been REALLY careful about people getting in. Yet, anyone thats interested that can always hit me up and go from there
Well, my current business partner is an ass. Even though I get paid more then he does, he feels like he can boss me around and I’m getting tired of it. The crap thing about it is he needs me and I need him. So we’re stuck. Live and learn.
Great post, Neil! I myself work with several other people closely on my projects, though I’m not sure if any of them are exactly business “partners”. That said, I’d class them all as friendsm which is where the problem begins. Work or play?
I can think of many people who I would love to partner with.
Unfortunately, most of them have a restraining order on me.
I think I would be most worried about creating a relationship with someone where money is involved. How would things be split? Half and half or otherwise? Who says what work is more valuable?
Although a friendship that works both personally, creatively and financially is definately something I’d love to forge.
Anyone in Omaha?
Amazing timing… I just got a partner who is a programmer just yesterday! I have to admit, that Dillsmack and Shoe’s partnership was my main inspiration.
No vested interest in individuals that are outsourcing. It is always better in my opinion to have someone with some ownership, they work much harder to acheive a common goal.
This is a great post. I think having a partner is essential especially when you have different skill sets, you need to be able to bring different things to the table. Also I think it is important that it is someone you can have frank discussions with and really say what you think…if you are worried about the relationship more than the business you will be in trouble.
My moto is to break things down to there simplest form…we think to much sometimes.
Assembling a team is always the best way to go as long as you know how to assemble the best team
I’ve always wanted a partner for projects, but never been able to find one
Who needs a partner ? You can do just fine on your own
I know what you mean when you say it can get depressing going alone. I’ve had offers to add partners but living in South Korea (US living overseas) limits those partnering opportunities.
I have had several engineers ask to partner up with me but most of them are co-workers. I’ve had to politely declined their requests, but I can tell it aggravates them, especially since I recruited most of them for their current position.
It would be a great talent pool to leverage because they are DBA’s, script writers, Windows admins, programmers or multi-skilled individuals—no marketers though. But here’s the dilemma: they are my subordinates. That would compromise my current position with them. Also, I seriously doubt a Fortune 100 company’s ethics/legal departments would allow that type of arrangement without giving me the ax.
Having someone to bounce your ideas off is certainly a good idea.
There are some downsides to having a partner too. One is that you don’t always have the same ideas for the business and things don’t go the way you planned. I would rather run the show and hire smart people – and pay them well – than have a partner that hinders me.
Hi – I can understand why having a partner is good for some people. But, you don’t need a partner with different skills to yours – you can employ people who have those skills.
MONEY RULE: Never, never “give” equity in a business when you can hire it.
Money Rule: NEVER, never, n e v e r, “give” equity in a biz when you can hire it.
Money Rule: Never, never, n e v e r, “give” equity in a biz when you can hire it.
Partnerships can have different definitions. It does not mean that you have to be in an actual business type system. I have a couple different partners on the internet on different projects. With the Internet it is a lot easier to maintain a loose partnership that holds each person accountable. Here is great example
when a partnership goes bad though, the fallout leaves you far worse off, been there and experienced it ! (unfortunately)
Wow, I never realized that the programmer for Auction Ads lives in the same town I do…
What are your ideas for business contracts/types with partners to keep a majority holding?
It’s even better to have lots of people who just work average.
Yes but if you have a good business partner that is good at everything you arent and vice versa, you wont need to risk hiring a new person. I would much rather give % to a trusted business partner cause then I know they will work just as hard as me to make it succesful
I think it’s unwise to get involved in partnerships just for the sake of having a partner. Usually winning partnerships develop themselves.
Good post neil
AuctionAds is a great example, explaining the benefits of partnerships!
You mention auction ads…has anyone here seen any really good success with them? I tried them and they are difficult unless you are in a really specific market? Any success?
I couldn’t agree more with this post. Sharing the profits is worth it just for the daily feedback/ideas/expertise you get from a business partner.
Getting a partneri s easy, believing him is damn hard
This is great advice. I think that especially important to consider is the fact that it is so important that you and your business partner have *complimentary* skills. If you both have the same exact skill set, why have a partner?
Our company, PartnerUp, is a social networking site designed to help people find business partners, co-founders, board members, advisors, mentors, and professionals. We’ve focused on trying to make it easy for people to find partners with the exact skills and experience that they need, whether it is sales, software development, marketing, finance, or something else.
please lead me to some we have potenial in uganda but limited by capital
Mast people can’t do everything like you said. If you’re a good writer; you design and programming skills probably aren’t up to par.
For sure business partners are very vital only that the world is going out of order with mistrust. i for one i need partners and looking forward for potential partners but must be willing to travel to uganda and see the potential that is worthy exploiting