The Power of the Partnership
Partnerships often suck. There I said. Tom and I often fight like an old married couple, in fact we’ve been called that by our wives, and even attendees of 360|Flex.
But I have no doubt in my mind, and have told Tom as much, that our strength is our differences, and that neither of us, could succeed without that other. Sure I don’t doubt that both of us could part company and be successes in our own right, but we’re like the wonder twins when together, an unbeatable force. We’re still interviewing for Gleek.
The number of business ideas Tom and I have bandied about are inumerable (freed, AntiMBA, more books than I can count as well), but the one that stuck was one that both of us were passionate about and could work together on. Conferences. It’s also the thing neither of us ever thought would be our ‘thing’.
I’ve tried being a software consultant (what developer hasn’t), and Tom fired me from Freed and went on his own, and well it didn’t go very far (I’m sure Tom can expand on Freed in his own post). But together we’ve not only taken the Flex Developer community by storm, but we’ve fired a warning shot across the bow of other tech conferences, putting them on notice that they cost too much, and offer too little.
What makes us work so well together is our differences; Tom is a planner, I’m not. I’m a risk taker, Tom tends to not be. I’m guided by my gut on a lot of things, and Tom likes proof/research. We balance each other out just enough so that we’re not paralyzed with “what if” but also not running off half cocked.
I think the true strength of a partnership is the same as a marriage, opposites attract. If you’re partner is on the exact same wavelength, there’s really no point in having a partner, you don’t need someone having the same thoughts as you, reinforcing each one. You need a partner that has the same goals but a different outlook, to act as a counter point.
Many business folks will poo poo the partnership, but I’m convinced that despite our differences and the shouting matches, 360Conferences, wouldn’t be what it is (or even exist) if not for the combined efforts of Tom and I.
February 17th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Darth Wilker – very nice post, the Sith are proud of what you and Tom have achieved. Very inspiring to those who are trying to achieve their own Galactic Empires (such as myself).
I would go one step further and say that beyond partnerships, where a partnership is merely combining forces (sometimes the Borg and I team up), the elements of success are the right balance of skills and chemistry.
Had you both been strong at the same things, and weak at the same things, that vulnerability would have lead you to failure. But when it comes to great team building/partnerships, you need that right mix where you've got all the critical skills covered and each persons skills complements the others.
But, skills and aptitude are one-third of what makes a great team. Another piece is the chemistry, that intangible, difficult to measure synergy that exists within great teams. The last piece is passion – if everyone is naturally motivated towards the goal, where they feel what they do is more than just a job, you'll get great results.
February 17th, 2009 at 6:05 pm
Absolutely! I don't have a partnership in business at this point in time, but my own relationship is built around my favourite quote: "if you and I agree on absolutely everything, only ONE of us is necessary."
Sometimes, I have to admit, it's not easy though. Some differences can just be game killers, especially if one party doesn't see them as 'strengths' to value but as obstacles to proceeding with the partnership.
February 17th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
yeah I completely agree. Chemistry is huge, as is passion. Doing a thing, for any other reason, I can't even fathom.
February 17th, 2009 at 6:55 pm
I dig that quote! LOL. Yeah we've had to work through a few of those types of differences.