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Have Your Spouse Help You Choose a Mate |
My parents invested significant time into my life to help me be a good judge of character. They wanted me to have friends that would influence me for good and not pull me away from the core values they were instilling. Their input in my life became even more important when it came to choosing the spouse I would spend the rest of my life with. Today I have a great group of friends and colleagues that encourage and support my entrepreneurial endeavors and a totally awesome, supportive, smokin hot wife!
From a business perspective...there is not much difference. We still need to be a great judge of character when it comes to whom we do business with. Choosing a business partner may be a close second to choosing a spouse. Entrepreneurs, you may not have a parent looking over your shoulder, but it may be a good idea for your spouse to come along side you when its time to chose the right business partners. This is just like a marriage partnership, so extreme care and caution are warranted. Just like a marriage is not easy to dissolve, trying to dissolve a partnership can bring about similar pain, frustration and potential financial ruin.
My spouse has a weird 6th sense about her. I can meet someone and have a great conversation and think, "Wow! This is a great person who can help me and vice versa." Then my wife may have the opportunity to spend some time with that same person and come away with a totally different perspective. Most of the time she is right on the money with her evaluation and probable outcome of a business relationship. She's never shy about saying "I told you so...".
My advice to you is to get to know a potential partner for a couple of years before you go into business together. That's easy for me to say...I dated my wife 6 years before we were married! But that may be hard for some to swallow because business opportunities have limited timetables. But just like my dad always told me about my girlfriends growing up... "Mike, just remember son, every date, is a possible mate". And so it is with your business acquaintances. Every person you connect and network with may be a potential business partner for you in the future. It's the true motives, experience and character you are looking for, not just charisma, education or cash. So include yo ur spouse in your observations and get their thoughts regarding your business partners.
Here a few key questions to ask...
· Do our core values align?
· Do we complement each other? You are NOT looking for someone to emulate you.
· Do they have a strong financial education?
· Do you like, trust, and respect them?
· Do you like, trust and respect their spouse?
· Can you confront or critique them without them getting defensive or angry?
· Is their own personal household in harmony...wife, kids, finances, etc...?
· Have you checked references, done background checks?
· Have you talked about your business owner's agreements concerning ownership, contributions of time and money, and exit plans?
You've heard marriage described as the "old ball and chain". While I personally hate that description for marriage, it's fairly accurate for business partnerships. Don't make hasty decisions when it comes to business partners.
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Thinking about a business partner as a marriage makes clear the importance of selecting an appropriate individual for such high-risk ventures like partnership.