What do you look for in a co-founder? 👫

André J
17 replies
Here are some of the attributes I personally look for: **Grit** Grit involves the passion and perseverance to achieve long-term and meaningful goals, as well as the ability to persist in something you feel passionate about and to persevere when faced with obstacles. Grit is also about perseverance, which means sticking with it and continuing to work hard even after experiencing difficulty or failure. **Drive** Drive is a planned effort to achieve something, while motivation is defined as "the willingness to do something, or something that causes willingness." Although both words are goal-oriented, they have significant differences in meaning. **Spike** To demonstrate a spike, a founder should show talent and focus on one or two main interests. This can help differentiate them from others and provide a unique value proposition. What do you look for when looking for a co-founder? 🙏👇

Replies

Cara (Borenstein) Marin
Love this. I'd also add that trust is very important and takes time to build. Your co-founder relationship will last many years through ups and downs. You want to make sure you trust your co-founder and have strong communication.
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André J
@stash_new Yeah this one is underrated for sure. Subconsciously I think it's my nr1 priority!
After the basic such us skills etc.. I look to see his personality and if he is a genuine person! I recommend the book principles by Ray Dalio, it is pretty good to answer this question
André J
@kchris22 I'm curious: What's your key takeaway from principles?
Unofficial Product Hunt Chrome Plugin
Unofficial Product Hunt Chrome Plugin
One that is commonly overlooked is each founder's personal pressures and goals. One time I had to separate from my co-founder because one of us was running out of savings much earlier than the other.
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André J
@jgani Yes. Very good point! And same here, there has to be alignment in life paths. I had to go another way once as well for this reason.
Divine Rivers
Complementary skills, cold-hearted belief in the vision, someone I enjoy to be around, and a do-er that gains sweat equity in the fact that they take ownership and accountability in their action. Essentially doesn't make excuses, gets things done, puts in the effort, not afraid to have hard discussions without taking it personal, and is committed to we're in this as a team mantra. The reality is your cofounder relationship is like a marriage and to boil it down to only a couple attributes is futile
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André J
@divine_rivers1 "cold-hearted belief in the vision" 🥰 Have you ever found such a co-founder? Sounds like a beast!!!
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Divine Rivers
@sentry_co Indeed, my Co-Founder 😃
Max
The shared vision is the most important.
Giacomo Bretel-De Simone
Co-Founder must be smart, highly driven/motivated, cool/honest & fun to work with
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Ruben Boonzaaijer
Someone with complementary skills
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Nolan Wang
A really really good looking guy @christopher_u_han
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Ryan Zhang
In a co-founder, I seek someone with complementary skills and a shared vision, ensuring we can both inspire and challenge each other to push the boundaries of what's possible. It's about finding that balance between mutual respect and relentless pursuit of innovation.
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André J
@ryan_motiff "relentless pursuit of innovation" 🤝 that should be the commas needle!
Cara (Borenstein) Marin
@ryan_motiff love the point on complementary skills. For me it's been key to think about what my strengths and weaknesses are and find someone whose strengths fill in the gaps of my weaknesses. I’m action-oriented and find it easy to jump into things without hesitation. There are advantages to this but it also means that I might not think enough before acting. My co-founder thinks a lot before taking action. Combining these two, we act pretty quickly and with intention.