An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure . . .
When launching a new venture, the possibilities are endless. Everybody is happy and opportunistic. What could possibly go wrong? Fast forward 4 years, and your either talking to me or a lawyer about what went wrong.
As with all things in life, businesses change. What you wanted out of the business may differ from where your partner is at. Outside influences may send you in different directions. So, now what?
Unfortunately, if you are just starting to think about this – you’ve got a problem. Both parties have a vested interest in the outcome and they have layered their own issues and emotions onto the problem. This is a really tough time to be rationale and hammer out a resolution.
No body likes to buy life insurance; it’s not a lot fun planning for your demise. Similarly, planning “the what if” for the end of your partnership doesn’t feel great either, but doing so alleviates a lot of grief during a potential stressful event.
No matter how much you like your partner at the start, put in an “out” clause so that both parties may terminate the partnership relatively easily. There may be a multitude of reasons why one partner may want to exit the business, and there should be a plan in place to allow that to occur and still have the business continue. Talk to your lawyer about executing a buy/sell agreement.
A little precaution before a crisis occurs is preferable to a lot of fixing up afterward.
As with all things in life, businesses change. What you wanted out of the business may differ from where your partner is at. Outside influences may send you in different directions. So, now what?
Unfortunately, if you are just starting to think about this – you’ve got a problem. Both parties have a vested interest in the outcome and they have layered their own issues and emotions onto the problem. This is a really tough time to be rationale and hammer out a resolution.
No body likes to buy life insurance; it’s not a lot fun planning for your demise. Similarly, planning “the what if” for the end of your partnership doesn’t feel great either, but doing so alleviates a lot of grief during a potential stressful event.
No matter how much you like your partner at the start, put in an “out” clause so that both parties may terminate the partnership relatively easily. There may be a multitude of reasons why one partner may want to exit the business, and there should be a plan in place to allow that to occur and still have the business continue. Talk to your lawyer about executing a buy/sell agreement.
A little precaution before a crisis occurs is preferable to a lot of fixing up afterward.
posted by Mike Doherty at
1:56 PM
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