Partnerships - The "Marriage" of Business ??

Chilllleee,

So, to flip back to the nuts and bolts of things, I thought this might be a good time to talk about business partnerships. It's still the beginning of the year, and for some of us that might mean we're reviewing 2024 performance, metrics, hits, misses and patterns. Some plans might be to keep?DNA of your work as is, and other plans may require us to change everything. How do we navigate?partnerships that seem to be more a liability than an asset? And how do you pivot these deeply layered, community-facing relationships in our world's current cancel culture? I'm not going to lie to you - in my career, every time I have recognized that a partnership needed to change, I treated it like I was moving through an active minefield. Every single step mattered. And one wrong step could have catastrophic impacts. Even, permanent. I know it's an intense analogy but as someone who has seen many partnership exits go wrong, I never wanted to cause that harm or create any massive community fallout. It's not just the shared work that gets dissolved, it's the connection between the people,?the community, the families that gets severed too.

So, there's a need to be mindful?about?it. Sometimes, the partnership may truly need to end. And sometimes, we can just be frustrated in the moment, or overwhelmed without the tools to say what's really getting in the way of our success. So, I now believe?the most loving thing we can do for those we work with, or do business with is to have planned seasons for review and evaluation. This is a perfect time of year for it, and it's never too late to start. As I've said in an earlier letter, I usually take December & January to do review and planning. I'm constantly looking at where there can be any improvements to the business or work. Each of?us will have our own set of priorities. When it comes to work or business, mine are - meaning, impact, #s served, dollars invested back to community and #s of new opportunities created. If a partnership ever starts to inhibit my ability to do one or several of those things, then yes for me, it's a sign that I need to look carefully at that relationship (or "business marriage") to see if it needs repair or release. This is something we cannot do with only our emotions. From a logical place, we have to be accountable to goals we've set (as with anything in life!) and say?okay, which?things have moved me closer to, or further away from our goals??Hopefully, we'll be a good leader and use the data to help us make better decisions - knowing the impact of it is wide.

It might be time to evaluate a business partnership when you notice it being harder to reach the goals you've set, or if there's been a consistent breakdown in communication. There is no singular handbook on how to handle the socio-emotional nuance of business but if I were to give you the cheat codes for a minute, I would just say that proactively planning for partnership before just jumping in because you like someone's vibe or website is the best place to start.?These days, I'm actually understanding that just like marriage in our personal lives - business partnerships are long-term commitments so I have to take time to get to know the other brand or business before I just jump into things. And in fact, I sleep better at night when I take my time.?We have to check that between us?trust, communication, autonomy and appreciation can grow between us. Get coffees, go for walks, attend some of their events, invite them to yours - really set out 3 months or so to get to know your potential?business partner. Ask hard questions. Make a joint conflict resolution plan to bring you back to peace before trouble?even starts. Even if it feels impersonal or awkward - do it! It will be an anchor when challenging times come. I just wish I had learned that sooner! Hopefully, it serves you.

Be the partner you wish to seek,

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