Co-Founder Mistakes That Kill Companies & How To Avoid Them

Every relationship has ebbs and flows. When you disagree, you don't have to come to a resolution. Instead, you can pause for a while.

Understand how your co-founder deals with stress. Some people deal with stress by striking out, and some by retreating. If you understand your co-founder, you can better interpret what they're doing.

When co-founders cannot have honest disagreements and have not had a real conversation in a long time, there might come a time when a breakup is inevitable.

The CEO's job is now not how to repair the relationship but how to separate most effectively and least destructively. It is best not to have a 50/50 deadlock. It might be reasonable for the CEO to have an extra share in the event of a 50-50 deadlock.

Adding co-founders later on can cause them to think that it's not their company. However, doing things together in the earliest stages will help people step up when they go through hard times.

Figure out the co-founder first before you raise money or come up with the next idea, then you can truly have collective ownership as you do things together.