
Ask HN: How did you determine if you and cofounder could work together? - a_lifters_life
.
======
ryanto
I've found the best way to know if I'm going to work well with someone is to
have previously worked with them before. Look for people you've enjoyed
working with, be it a co-worker, classmate, someone you've worked on open
source with.

Things that I think must exist between cofounders.

* You must like and trust each other.

* Make sure you are able to be candid with each other.

* Know each others weaknesses. Really another way of saying have realistic expectations.

If you have no prior work experience try working on a small one-off project to
get a feel for each other's working styles.

------
tixocloud
It's a tough one but you don't really know until you start working together.

One thing that's been important is communication and openness. Trust that
you're going to be upfront with each other. Otherwise, the issues can't come
out and be dealt with. Instead, they get buried away until one day it blows up
in your face.

------
JacobAldridge
Only a few weeks ago I bundled up some of my experiences - as cofounder, or as
an advisor - into a post on the key questions I see [1].

The big one that gets overlooked is the Behavioural preferences - appetite for
Risk, are you a Manager or a Maker, etc. The commercial opportunity and
personal passions may align, but when something goes wrong are you going to
respond in similar ways or will your cofounder start making decisions 'on
their own' [2]?

[1] [http://jacobaldridge.com/business/8-key-questions-to-ask-
whe...](http://jacobaldridge.com/business/8-key-questions-to-ask-when-forming-
a-business-partnership/)

[2] NB They will probably feel you've gone off on your own as well. It's just
because you've responded differently - for example, doubling down on a risky
decisions versus backing away from it.

~~~
GFischer
I didn't know about Compass behavioural indicators (
[http://www.shirlawscompass.com/](http://www.shirlawscompass.com/) ). It
sounds interesting.

------
GFischer
Same as the previous answers - by having worked together before and building
mutual trust.

For people that didn't have that advantage, maybe something like a hackathon
can be a good litmus test?

