Ep. 114 – How to Survive a Founders’ Breakup

SIB-Blog-1Breaking up is never easy. When the breakup is between business founders, rather than romantic partners, things can become especially painful. When those founders are friends working on a handshake agreement, the failure can be catastrophic.

In today’s episode, host and business coach Tom Ryan shares the story his very first startup, which he co-founded with a friend. Learn how a few bad calls at the start resulted in a failed business and a friendship that nearly didn’t recover.

• Show introduction

• The wisdom that comes from epic breakups

• Why founder breakups can be exceptionally painful

• The story of Tom’s first business, a beer-of-the-month club, started with a friend

• Issues to watch out for:

  • Accountability: Who has the final authority?
  • Communication: Are all founders working from the same information?
  • Expectations: Are the founders comfortable with their business roles?
  • Anticipate Friction: Do you have a board of advisors who can help negotiate disagreements?

• When a founder partnership struggles:

  • Don’t let yourself off the hook
  • Consider a business-partnership counselor

• Sign off, and ways to contact the show

Links for Today’s Episode:

Tweet Tom at: @TomRyanAVL

Do you have a question about your business? Tom would love to help you:

Leave a voicemail: (801) 228-0663

E-mail your questions: SuccessInBusinessPodcast@gmail.com

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