One of the best things you can do to add success to your business is to look for a partner.
There are a number of ways to partner with someone to build buzz for your individual businesses, or even to form a long-term business partnership.
Before you mingle your business fate with someone else, though, it’s important to carefully consider whether or not s/he is a good fit for you. Here are four things you should know about a potential business partner:
1. Financial Situation
You don’t need to know every single thing about someone’s financial situation before you partner with him or her, but you should have a reasonably good idea of where they stand.
Is your potential business partner on firm financial footing. Can they hold up their end of any financial arrangement? If there is debt involved, what kind is it and is it under control.
How much you need to know about a partner’s financial decision depends, in large part, on how involved you will be financially with your business partner. The greater the entanglement, the more you need to know.
2. Your Partner’s Strengths
Any relationship requires knowledge of strengths and weaknesses. You should know the strengths of your business partner. It’s important to know what s/he does well because you want someone who complements you.
Pay attention to what your partner does well. Do you need someone to help you run a website? Perhaps you want someone who is good at crunching numbers. Don’t forget that you might want someone with good connections to complement your ability to sketch out processes.
No matter the situation, look for someone who has strengths that match with your weak points. That way, you can both benefit from the partnership.
3. Your Partner’s Weaknesses
This isn’t just about matching your strengths with a partner’s weak points.
You also need to be aware of potential stumbling blocks that can come as a result of your partnership. Do you know that your partner is going to have some issues that you will need to overcome? Will you have to be constantly asking for him or her to complete tasks?
There is nothing wrong with having a business partner that has some weaknesses. However, you need to be realistic about the impact that these could have on your partnership, and where it might go from here.
Understand these issues so you can decide if the partnership is worth pursuing.
4. Whether or Not You Mesh Personality-Wise
Two of my business partners are extroverts. This is great because they can help compensate for my deficiencies as an introvert.
However, what really makes my partnerships work is the fact that I have personality compatibilities with those I work with.
We have similar goals and values. We have compatible philosophies about life and money. There are some points of disagreement, but most of them are minor.
The idea is to make sure you know whether or not you get along as partners. Also, you need to know that you can trust your business partner. Understanding personality and knowing what to expect can help you build that trust.
