But what if your business is the brainchild of more than one person, or you feel the need to bring in someone to support, how do you know when you’ve found the perfect partner?
For us, the creation of Phase, the world’s first biology-based productivity tool for women, was somewhat serendipitous as Georgie (my co-founder) and I met at Boundless Life and bonded over a love of wild swimming. Over the few days our chats evolved into deeper discussions about managing hormones as career focussed women, and how we both felt there was a gap in the market for a productivity tool that supported women. It was a moment when the stars aligned – here we both were, in a position to start a new business, both with the same passion (to make women’s work lives easier and with the vision to make it all a reality.
From its very infancy, Phase was the passion and dream of more than one founder, so it was less about ‘choosing’ a co-founder and more about ensuring we all knew what we were getting into. Here are our top tips to knowing when you’ve ‘found the one’!
Be honest
This has to be the cornerstone of any co-founder relationship. From the beginning we have endeavoured to be completely upfront with one another. Sometimes it can seem easier to gloss over the truth, dilute how you really feel about something, but we know that for the greater good, honesty is essential. We speak up, clear the air and move on.
What is the worst case?
Lay out what the worst case scenario might be, and work backwards. This is something we have done, and I believe it is a fantastic roadmap should things not go as planned. We each know how to approach various scenarios and the hope is this mitigates the likelihood of falling out.
Be different
I know I can’t do everything, I also know I’m not good at everything. Having a co-founder who can complement your own skillset is vital. Georgie has such an impressive background as a marketer, whereas I am stronger on the operations side. With our third co-founder Sam, he has the technical expertise which beautifully completes the Phase team.
Be the same
Yes it is wonderful to have differences, but it is equally as important to think in the same way. One must know that their co-founder will stay the course and continue to believe in the vision of the business, even when things are challenging.
Have fun
A little twee perhaps, but oh so true!! Running a business alongside the demands of parenthood and life, is not for the faint of heart. At the outset, one of our non-negotiables was that we would seek out the fun and adventure at every possible point. Respecting one another’s need for downtime, the flexibility to manage meetings around family commitments, and laugh as much as possible – these are values embedded into the Phase culture.
