Our study of successful companies has taught us that founders who find the right partner find power. Without exception, partners tell us they never could have done what they have done alone. The thriving partnerships are like marriages. The partners admire and respect each other and defer to each other quickly, especially when someone wants to know about an area where the other partner is the expert.
Thriving partners know that the other guy is better at some things than he is. That's the whole point. You never want to be the partner of a guy who sees you as the sou chef. You want to partner with a person who knows you are better than he is at some things. You also want your partner to know that you know your own weaknesses so well that there is no way you could build a business alone.
In his book, The Illusions of Entrepreneurship, Scott Shane points out that the companies founded by more than one person have a greater chance at success than companies launched by an individual.
One of our favorite partnerships is Dave Young and Jodi Johnson who have built their business, Oberon, into a 500-person company in a few fast years! In past work together, they found out that their management styles and philosophies were almost identical. Marry that with complementary areas of expertise and profound trust and respect for the other, you have the makings of a powerful and extremely successful partnership.
