Most investors, entrepreneurs, and business owners are going to work with partners. Whether you’re looking for a partner in the truest sense – going in on a business or investment venture together – or partnering with a professional service or company, due diligence is essential.
To trust blindly is to risk everything.
Protect your reputation and your financial future by watching for these red flags. If you see these signs, chances you’ve found yourself a bad business partner. Run, don't walk!
Watch for These Signs to Avoid an Untrustworthy & Unreliable Business Partner
1. Poor Communication Skills
Every aspect of business depends on clear, close communication. It’s even more vital within the context of a business partnership. If your partner is slow to respond, never reaches out, or fails to communicate their needs and intentions clearly, you’re entering into a situation where the right hand doesn’t know what the left is doing. And that’s dangerous.
You should feel secure in your business relationship, knowing that you have all of the information and are on the same page.
2. A Pattern of Poor Judgment
While we’ve all made our own financial blunders, beware a storied history of them. Bankruptcies, failed business ventures, a string of poor credit and debts…these are all signs you’re dealing with someone who will drag you down. We can’t demand perfection, but we can certainly demand financial competence!
3. Stuck in a Bad Kind of Stubbornness
Today’s business landscape moves faster than ever. Technology has left no industry untouched, and that means that things are constantly in flux. Changing. Improving. Innovating. You need a partner with the agility, flexibility, and adaptability to succeed. If your partner is stuck in old ways even in light of newer, more efficient and cost-effective methods, you may be in trouble. In a business partnership, there’s no room for my-way-or-the-highway types. Look for those willing to grow, learn, and compromise.
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4. Unfair Expectations
Unrealistic expectations will torpedo a business relationship. That often sinks the business, too. Is your partner willing to sign fair agreements with you? Or do they feel entitled to more than their fair share? Do they have a realistic picture of your abilities, capacity, and timelines? If they don’t, you’re in for a long, uphill battle that will lead to resentment and ruin.
5. The Benefits Are Unbalanced
In an ideal partnership, everyone brings something valuable to the table. The best partnerships comprise of those with complementary skills and abilities. Don’t look for a partner just like you. And don’t settle for a partner that you’ll have to carry. Find a person who is strong where you’re lacking. This demands the development of self-awareness. It’s difficult to know whether a relationship is unbalanced if you don’t recognize your own strengths and weaknesses. Do the hard work of looking at yourself first. From there, you can better identify partners that will mesh with you and complement your work.
6. Values Are Misaligned
Your values and vision are the foundation of any business venture. They inform and guide your decision-making. They give voice to your brand and a purpose to your work. Just like a marriage, a conflict of values will inevitably lead to a broken business relationship. Does your partner believe in what’s important to you? Are they dedicated to ethical business practices? Do they draw the same lines in the sand, or will they undermine that which you care about most?
If the values don’t line up, consider it a dealbreaker.
7. Follow-Through Stinks
Your partner might say and think all the right things. They share your values. They have the skills you don’t. They believe in a fair and equitable partnership. They have a squeaky-clean financial track record. But they’re still a bad partner because they don’t follow through. Beware of those who talk a big game but never show up on the court.
Follow-through is non-negotiable. You need to be able to rely on your partner to keep their word, to show up and do the work, and to pull their full weight. The last thing you need is a flake. Your partner may not be malicious in their inaction, but it doesn’t matter. If you can’t trust them to get their job done, you don’t have a partner. You have a liability.
