As the famous quote by Peter Feinstein goes, Business partnerships are a little bit like marriages. A lot of them don't work out and some end badly! What Feinstein has cleverly noted here is that maintaining a friendly rapport with your business partner can require constant effort and time, like any relationship.
Whether your partnership is of personal or professional nature, or a long term commitment or a short term venture with a friend, the rules are more or less the same.
Before delving into Business Partnership Planning, here are 3 questions to ask your own self:
Do you see eye to eye on goals and aspirations?
Does he/she share and respect your personal and professional values?
Do you trust my partner’s motivations?
If you reach a positive answer while thinking about these questions, congratulations! Read on to find ways in which you can continue the relationship with the same high spirits that you started off on:
Communication: You might be tired of hearing all about how communication is the key to any good relationship, but this frequent repetition of the same advice is because of the magic it can work with any partnership.
Ask any successful businessman and they will tell you. Speak with your partners constantly to ensure that you are on the same page with them and share each other’s views. Assumptions are the evil in any business and the only way to do away with them is talk. Discuss business ventures beforehand and find out what he hopes to achieve from any particular venture.
Voice your expectations: Regardless of how a close a relationship you might share with your partner, he cannot read your mind. It is up to you to let him know about your expectations constantly and encourage him to do the same during the business strategy development process.
Many a time it is seen that two partners enter a business agreement with two different business structures and end up having different expectations from the same venture. This can lead to miscommunication and unclear motivations.
Business Strategy Development: Developing the business strategy and model is an exciting but long process, one that is expected to be fraught with disagreements but do not let that deter you from the process of creating and agreeing upon a strategy that you are both comfortable with. Make strategy development a part of your Business Partnership Planning.
Keeping these in mind, remember that no relationship is without misunderstandings, but following these simple tips can result in a solid and successful partnership that both of you are proud of.
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