5 Signs Of A Bad Business Partner

People go into partnerships all the time. They partner with others to get married, buy a house, business and so on. While the signs we are looking at can work with just about any type of partnership, business is the subject of interest today.

5 Signs Of A Bad Business Partner
Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash

It is necessary…compulsory even, to know what you’re getting into before starting a partnership with someone and before you ‘get into bed’ with the person, you should look out for these things.

Is The Partnership Too Good To Be True?

Some opportunities come and on the surface they seem ‘too good to be true.’ If that’s the case, the truth is, it probably is. People are looking to scam others with ideas all the time and you need to be vigilant when potentially getting into business with someone. You would hate to be cheated on your very first venture, some people don’t survive it.

Is Our Business Priority?

It is entirely possible that the person you’re getting into business with has other gigs that they are taking on. That’s not in itself a bad thing, everyone has a motive to do anything in life. It’s possible that your business partner wants to use your business as a means to prop up another business or to add to a chain of businesses and create and empire. Whatever the motive, ask yourself if it means your business will take a back seat. While it’s okay if your business partner has other gigs, it is not okay if those other gigs will come at the detriment of your business. So always endeavor to find out what your potential business partner is up to and if it could have a negative effect on your business.

How much Work/Expertise Is the Person Bringing?

When starting a business, you might not share the workload 50/50 with your partner, however, you would be doing yourself a disservice if you are doing 90% of the work with the other person only doing 10%. Make sure that the work you both put into the business is reasonable. Apart from that, you should also ensure that you’re not getting a simple workhorse as a partner. While passion, dedication and all that is valuable, it is also replaceable. What isn’t replaceable however, is experience and expertise. Make sure you get a partner that can bring both.

Are They Telling The Truth?

No one likes a liar. This is even worse in the world of business as honesty between parties is a fundamental part of a successful business. If your so called business partner can lie about traffic, qualifications and personal finance, who is to say he or she will not lie about profit margins, gains and so on?

Can I Live With This Person?

While expertise, truthfulness and transparency are all laudable attributes in a partner to be, the most important could simply be chemistry. You need to have a personal relationship with your partner to work with them. What’s the use of starting a business with someone if the both of you cannot spend the night in the office working or relaxing for a drinks and a massage after work? If you can’t go on vacations with this person or you do not enjoy the person’s company, what’s the point? Because the truth is, if the business is to be successful, odds are that you would spend the most amount of time with this person and you’re in for a world of misery if it is with someone you do not like.

 

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