No, I’m not about to say I think marriage is an archaic institution, or rant against it in any way. In fact, I believe in marriage, and not just in a “we need to do this so we can have children and not create social issues” way.
I’m talking about change.
An old business partner of mine recently pointed out that men enter marriages expecting their wives not to change, and women expect that their husbands will. Surprise! You’ll both change, and likely in ways nobody saw coming. The trick to success, therefore, would seem to be navigating the change together.
Business is the same. We enter into contracts, take on partners, hire employees and engage contractors expecting that things will go a certain way. Then something changes and we wonder why we weren’t prepared.
It’s about expecting the change, recognizing change is happening or has happened, and effecting change of your own to act on it.
Even the partnerships you make change, and sometimes you can’t foresee how that will take shape.
At Answerguy Central we do various things for our clients so they can concentrate on running their businesses. Sometimes we “run their businesses for them” so they can concentrate on the thing that makes the business viable instead of checking nuts and bolts. What’s the right amount to pay us for this?
Maybe you go into business with someone. Maybe one of you brings money to the table while the other is running the business. Who should own what? Should it be 50/50? You may think so on the day you start things up, but I promise that if the business sells for a large profit three years down the road the one of you running the business is going to think his contribution was more important that that of the guy who “only” made an investment 36 months earlier. Of cource, the money guy will feel ripped off if everything happens overnight.
Be ready for the changes coming at you. We see it all the time, and the only constant is change.
