Welcome to Momentum's monthly newsletter, The White Space! My continued goal is to offer solid business advice, thought provoking articles and information on upcoming events. Your comments on what I publish and your suggestions about things to publish are welcomed and support the creation of an interactive experience expanding the white space.

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~ Paul Cooperstein


How to Find and Choose a Partner

by Paul Cooperstein and Alejandro Levins

Part 1: Interviewing Your Partner

Partners can compliment your skills and broaden the scope of what you can accomplish. They can help you get more work done simply by having another body with whom to share work, or by bringing resources to the table that you may lack. They can help you think more creatively, more strategically, or just plain better. And, partners can help bear the burden of running a business, whether by spreading the risk, sharing the hours, or assuming key responsibilities.

To help you avoid the most common pitfalls facing would-be partners and help you to evaluate prospective partnerships before you commit, we will be discussing our four-part process for picking and keeping the right partner in our next three (3) issues.

The first part of this process is to thoroughly interview your prospective partner, using the following questions as a guide to help you with your evaluation and choice. Do yourself a favor and be honest with your prospective partner as well as yourself.

• What’s Their Working Style? Do you hear, “I love to work collaboratively,” or is their response, “I mostly prefer to work alone?” If they express a willingness to do whatever it takes to see your goals realized and to share decision-making and control, chances are, they could make for a good alliance. If they operate like the Lone Ranger, ask yourself if you are willing to play the role of Tonto?
  
  
• What’s Their Partnership History? Do they have a demonstrable track record of previous successful engagements? If your prospective partner cannot or will not furnish names of people with whom they have worked in the past, they either do not have a history of success, or they don’t want you to hear what might be said about them. It’s not important that they were the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, but they should be able to point to some lasting relationships they approached with integrity and ambition. If they have a “mystery past”, look hard at whether they would be the right partner for you.
  
  
• Are They Willing to Own Up to Their Mistakes? Everyone makes mistakes. It is vital that your prospective partner is willing to own up to theirs when they happen and not hide bad news from you. Equally important is their willingness to take responsibility for the problems. If they are not forthcoming about previous failures or embarrassing events, be wary.
  
  
• Where’s Their Partnership Focus? Do you hear, “How will we benefit?” or, “What’s in it for me?” Do they have the tendency to appreciate and give others credit, or do they just criticize? If your conversations center on what they will get rather then what they will give, it’s another cause for concern. If this is their attitude when the future looks bright, how will they act when the chips are down and the pressure is on?

This series of suggested questions is just the beginning of a process that will provide you with a strong foundation for building your partnerships.

I spoke with an associate not too long ago who has heard me speak on developing partnerships before. He recently had the opportunity to create an alliance with an associate. He took the time to spend an entire day talking with his prospective partner about their lives, ambitions, values, styles and goals. After that day of conversation, he called me to say, “Thank you, thank you! You saved me from a disaster. After this day, it was clear that the person I was going to create a partnership with was not going to be an appropriate partner for me. I am happy to say that I avoided a big mistake.

Here’s to good partnering.

Each month I pose a question to my readers and ask that they actively participate in open dialogue with me. This month’s question is:

What things have you learned about working with partners, choosing partners and ending partnerships?

Remember, I welcome your thoughts and comments on the subject. Please feel free to contact me at paul@businessmomentum.org or at 617.328.7333.


"Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right."

~ Henry Ford

"When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red hot cinder a second seems like an hour. That's relativity."

~ Albert Einstein


How to Have Your Best Year Yet

Join us on Thursday, March 31, at Marina Bay for a special Lunch & Learn Presentation presented by Paul Cooperstein of MOMENTUM—How to Have Your Best Year Yet. In this luncheon seminar you will learn to identify what you really want to accomplish over the next twelve months and begin to create a path to achieve those goals.

How to Have Your Best Year Yet is an annual planning and implementation system that produces RESULTS year after year. The How to Have Your Best Year Yet system teaches companies and the people within them to generate their best year yet, year after year. We create an atmosphere where each member of the team is encouraged to participate in an environment of open, honest cooperation and communication. Together we develop a plan, which is original and personally crafted by your employees, and we work together to bring the plan to life over the next twelve months. Clearly stated, we work together to accomplish all of the goals the group sets for the forthcoming year. Get ready for your Best Year Yet!

Registration Information

The workshop will begin promptly at 12:30 pm. There is a $25 charge to attend and lunch will be served. MOMENTUM is located at Marina Bay, 500 Victory Road, 2nd floor, North Quincy, MA 02171. Upon arrival, please check in on the second floor at the Amity Insurance reception area. Parking is available onsite at no cost. Please RSVP to Valerie McSorley at Avant Garde Events by calling 617.935.9040 or via e-mail at Valerie@AvantGardEvents.com.


We help businesses make more money and help those businesses and the people in them create the necessary skills to create a MOMENTUM that is sustainable. We get clients excited about their business and help them face the day's challenges with COMMITMENT, PASSION and MOMEMTUM. Finding that zone, developing that zone, sustaining that zone, that is what MOMENTUM is all about.

Here's a list of real world deliverables you should recognize instantly:

• Executive Coaching
• Operational and Business Planning
• Goal Setting and Follow Through
• Management and Leadership Training
• Partnership Facilitation (before, during and after)
• Retreat Facilitation
• Dispute Mediation and Resolution
• Internal Corporate Communication strategies