My Co-Founder, Scarlett and I came together as friends to launch our branding agency LUNA + LION, so I really relate to this experience.  

Let’s be upfront, your relationship will change as you’re adding a new complex layer into your dynamic. But you have a say in what that impact is, especially if you go into this partnership fully aligned and aware of how you want your relationship to evolve.

My free resource, ‘What to consider when choosing a Co-Founder’ covers the key steps to work through together, so definitely go check that out.

I’ve also collated some specific and very valuable nuggets of advice from my community in the section below. So with the key steps and tips covered, I’ll share some more detailed thoughts… 

It’s very wise to connect the health of your relationship to the success of your business, as the two are intrinsically linked. A key thing is therefore to define what a healthy relationship and a successful business looks like to you both, so be sure to do that in detail.

Also be honest about how you feel your relationship might evolve. I know you’re new Co-Founders so there’s no specific experience to draw on, but be curious, what ‘could’ that be like, what would you ‘want’ that to be like? The best thing to do is get in the habit of consistently communicating about everything (this is a key theme in the audience answers below and my resource).

On that note, how do you feel about your communication as friends? Are you able to be really honest with each other? Are you comfortable challenging your opinions? Do you communicate in the same way?

There are elements of a friendship that if mirrored in a partnership, can enable real success. Things like trust, openness, respect, loyalty, fun; they’re all powerful Co-Founder ingredients. Just be clear about the partnership you want to build, and therefore the potential strengths and gaps in your current dynamic that might need to be addressed.

I’m excited for you, it’s an amazing experience to go through with a friend 😊