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Warning Signs Your Partnership May Not Work

If you're setting up a partnership with another person, you need to ensure that they are trustworthy and you're able to work together effectively. However, this isn't always the case.

Partnerships can sometimes suffer from a lack of communication, inflexible goals, or approaches, all of which can put a strain on the partnership. If you're forewarned about a situation, you can better prepare the business and seek legal help if necessary.

What are the signs of a bad partner?

If failure is on the horizon for your partnership, the failure doesn't come out of nowhere; there are warning signs that you can look out for.

If you know the warning signs, you can highlight these with your partner and try to get the business back on track.

1. Poor Communication

Clear communication is the cornerstone of any partnership. If your communication isn't clear in either direction, it can be a sign that the partnership isn't working.

If the partnership starts with poor communication, the partnership isn't starting on a firm footing. Unless both partners put in the hard work to improve the communication, the partnership is doomed to fail, and it may be best to cease the partnership before any money or time is invested.

Remember, if the communication isn't strong before anything gets tough, it's unlikely to improve once you hit your first major hurdle.

2. Misaligned Mission and Vision

If you and your partner set out with different ideas of where the partnership should go, you'll find that the business is in a constant state of flux.

Businesses can't survive in a state of flux without a defined vision. For example, if one partner wants the business to expand into another location and the other wants to keep the business small, there is a misaligned vision.

While this example is a large-scale difference, there are other, smaller ways in which the mission and vision can be misaligned. This can impact the way you work and the effectiveness of your business in providing a high level of service to your clients.

3. Vague Answers

If you ask your partner a question, and certain parts of it are avoided, even asking in numerous different ways, it could be a signal that something isn't right.

You want to work with a partner who answers questions no matter what you're asking. Otherwise, they may be hiding something from you that is important to the business.

4. A Lack of Responsibility

No one is 100% perfect all of the time, and things may go wrong. This is a fact of life, but if your partner can't admit responsibility for their mistakes, likely, they aren't the best fit for your business.

You need to work with a partner who can hold themselves accountable for their actions while helping your business grow and succeed.

5. Talking Down to Others

If your partner spends a lot of time talking down about your competition or former clients, it's a sign that your partnership won't work out. If they're willing to talk down about former clients to you, it's likely they are going to talk patronisingly about you to others. It could also make them a difficult person to work with.

6. No Focus on Mutual Success

If your partner is only focusing on their success and not that of the business or the other partners involved, this isn't conducive to having a good partnership.

A good partnership should discuss the benefits and goals from both points of view; otherwise, it won't work.

7. Focussing on Grievances

Any business partner that only talks about grievances with past employees or partners should be a cause for concern.

Everyone does something like this to some extent, but when it's relentless and about every other person they have been in contact with, it should be a cause for concern. It could indicate that they are the cause of the problem, rather than the other parties concerned.

8. Rushing Things

Your partner may be eager to start the business and get things up and running, but they may start to cut corners and rush setting up.

If processes and procedures are not set up correctly, it could be the downfall of your business. However, there is also a flip side: your partner may leave things to the last minute and rush through them.

If your partner leaves everything to the last minute, this can leave everything unduly on your shoulders to deal with.

9. Not Respecting Your Time

If you have a partner who doesn't respect your time and is constantly late to meetings or re-arranging at the last minute, it doesn't bode well for the partnership. Being lazy with time can be a sign that they are not respectful and don't really care about the time of others.

Summing Up

If any of the partners in your partnership are acting in the ways mentioned above, it may be a warning that the partnership isn't going to work out. If you notice any early warning signs, discuss them with your partner and try to resolve the issues. If they still persist after this conversation, it may be time to reconsider the partnership.

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