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hi guys. when i first started out, i got a partner, with whom we had a verbal agreement to split fifty-fifty ownership, and we did not have anything in writing, until he had paid me the agreed upon amount. so far, he has paid half the amount. what we agreed on was that i would be in charge of the daily running of the business and consult him only on the major decisions. recently, what i have realised is that when i first decided on having this business, i had specific goals set out for it, and i am now not happy about the agreement. at most, i feel i can only offer him a maximum of twenty five to thirty percent, and i feel that i need to follow my heart,as this was what i followed when i decided to go out in business in the first place. my question is, is this unethical or in bad faith of me, to go back on the verbal agreement we had? we still need to draw up a written agreement, which we had agreed to draw up once i receive full payment from him. I cant help bt feel guilty about it, thinkikng of how he will take the news, but deep down i feel its not something i can compromise, because this goes beyond just a normal business transaction. Am i doing the right thing by following my emotion or heart, or should i look at it from a business sense? any help,tips or advise would be much appreciated.
Raven
It seems to me that your partner has not met his end of the deal and only paid half of what is due.
One of the best training courses I ever did was on negotiating. Have a look at BATNA training. Now i suggest the first thing you do is discuss this with someone you respect and believe to have good judgment. This often brings out things you don't want to hear and raises interesting alternatives.
I feel that by not paying the agreed amount that the agreement is not in force but I don't have the whole picture. Then read that whole website and work out your BATNA in a clinical manner. That should help you. Just remember you have to live with yourself so you must feel whatever you do is ethical.
Why do you need a partner?
Why didn't you just do it yourself?
I completely agree with that. In 2 prior business's i had partners, both ended very badly from all sides. It sounds as though you have ethics in place which is very noble - I like Ianf comment - do what your able to sleep at night with, don't be unethical, as far as i am concerned, although you may think you know him, if roles are reversed, often people don't care how you end up at the end of the day.
If you feel getting out of it is right, then go for it - just find a way to make it fair
thanks. that really helps. I read the article on negotiating fairly, and it helped make me look at it in perspective. I thought i needed a partner at first because i felt a bit overwhelmed and was scared of doint it alone, but i now realise that this is something i need to do for myself, and i do not feel right about the partnership anymore. you're right though. i need to handle this fairly for him, but i also need to look at what works best for me.
When I started Digital Addiction, I had 2 other partners who were my friends, but as time went by, I realised that having partners would hold me back as if they don't like something, I can't do it, everything I want needs to be consulted past them and the business was completely my idea ... I just took partners because I thought I needed help with capital and with people helping me out.
After I realised partners were not ideal, I spoke to them, and helped them understand that with partners I will not be able to progress my company the way I wanted to and that I made a mistake in thinking I needed partners.
My one partner wasn't happy initially, but got over it ... the other for some reason was more than happy to get out.
So basically what I'm saying is do what your gut tells you. Explain to your partner that you realise you made a mistake by getting one, give him interest on the money he put in. Business isn't all peaches all the time, and sometimes we will do things we don't like doing, but are necessary.
If you need any Accounting, Tax or even Financial Management advice, PM me and I'll try help and keep your information confidential.
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In asking my questions, it's not a case of being against partnerships. It's more a case of you need to recognise why you got into the partnership in the first place.
Even then, there is a second stage that is clearly overlooked in many cases. The dynamics of the partnership often changes over time. For example the partner who was critical at startup suddenly might not be so important once the business is established. What happens then?
I think Eitai gets pretty close to my thinking on this.
Seems both of you may be at fault here. He is at fault for not coming up with his full share of his portion. You are at fault as there is a verbal agreement in place, and from what I understand a verbal agreement can be binding in a court of law.
Just my 2 cents
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the issue of having a business partner
hi guys. when i first started out, i got a partner, with whom we had a verbal agreement to split fifty-fifty ownership, and we did not have anything in writing, until he had paid me the agreed upon amount. so far, he has paid half the amount. what we agreed on was that i would be in charge of the daily running of the business and consult him only on the major decisions. recently, what i have realised is that when i first decided on having this business, i had specific goals set out for it, and i am now not happy about the agreement. at most, i feel i can only offer him a maximum of twenty five to thirty percent, and i feel that i need to follow my heart,as this was what i followed when i decided to go out in business in the first place. my question is, is this unethical or in bad faith of me, to go back on the verbal agreement we had? we still need to draw up a written agreement, which we had agreed to draw up once i receive full payment from him. I cant help bt feel guilty about it, thinkikng of how he will take the news, but deep down i feel its not something i can compromise, because this goes beyond just a normal business transaction. Am i doing the right thing by following my emotion or heart, or should i look at it from a business sense? any help,tips or advise would be much appreciated.
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