A lot of people want to start businesses with other people. This is almost certainly a mistake. I have learned this the easy way, thankfully. I had business partners who let me come out on top when we flopped. But I learned that nobody needs a business partner. Well, not nobody. But you probably don’t. If you’re a wantrepreneur, or an aspiring or novice solopreneur, you probably don’t need a business partner. Everyone thinks they do. It’s a natural desire to want to take a risk with someone rather than alone. But it’s definitely the wrong move, especially in 2025.
There’s no such thing as a 50/50 partnership
Nobody brings the same value. Nobody does the same job and nobody does the same amount of work. 50/50 partnerships don’t exist, and so they’re inherently unfair.
Sharing debt is crazy
If you take on debt with someone else, you’re liable for everything they do. Do you want to be liable for someone else’s bad decisions? I didn’t think so. Sharing debt is not the right move. If you start a company, they can take out debt on behalf of the company, and by extension your behalf.
Sharing liability is dangerous
You don’t want to be in a situation where you can go to jail as a result of someone else’s nefarious plans. Business is a serious endeavor. Depending on what you’re doing, lives may hang in the balance. If you are found guilty of violations, you should expect to spend time behind bars. Be careful what you do in the world of business. It can be extremely dangerous.
Sharing money can bankrupt you
If you have a shared bank account with someone, they can withdraw from it. This is very rare just because it’s so blatant, but it’s not worth chasing down a thief. Don’t put yourself in a vulnerable position in the first place.
Friends often don’t sign contracts
This is because they trust each other implicitly and think everything is going to be gumdrops and rainbows. Things suddenly get brutal when money’s involved.
You should be building online
This is another reason why you should not be looking for a business partner. You should be building your business online. It should probably be an affiliate blog or website, but what do I know. Build online for best results. The internet is the future. More and more of the global economy will be moving to the web. Learn about content now and learn how to make your business future-proof. You want to be involved in an industry for which there’s a lot of demand.
You can do it on your own
This is the honest truth. In today’s world, you can create a lot of economic value if you put in the effort. You don’t need the help of other people, most of the time. Just stay committed to what you’re doing, and you’ll be able to do a lot. You overestimate what you can do in one year, and underestimate what you can in 5 or 10 years. You don’t need other people’s help to start a business. You just need the right idea.
Worst case scenario? Take on your own debt
If you have something you really believe in, just take on your own debt. This is especially worthwhile if you live in a country where you can declare bankruptcy. Take on some debt and risk that money on your business. You don’t want to split your company up. You want to own all of it yourself.
Equity is wealth
In the long run, that’s what matters most. You need to build equity in order to create a bunch of wealth. This means that you’re going to want to own your entire business outright, and avoid debt. If you can’t build a business yourself, save money and get involved in real estate. Or start investing. Think ahead. You want to own as much as possible, so that you can be as rich as possible. Don’t get involved with a business partner who will take half your equity.
Business partners are for scaling
If you want to grow your business to a large size, that’s when you’re going to want to have business partners. Use business partners to scale your business. That’s really the only point of having someone else around, cutting into your equity. You want to use the other person to scale your business to make more money together than either of you could have on your own.
Your first business partner should be the bank, or your family
And you should be buying real estate, to be honest. Maybe you should be scaling your existing business. Generally speaking, however, your first business partner should be the bank. If you have family and can borrow from them informally, you definitely should. There’s no reason to pay interest if you don’t have to.
You don’t need a business partner. You may need someone to scale with at some point, but start off alone. A partner might seem good at first glance, but these kinds of situations can lead to a whole lot of problems. Avoid these kinds of situations. Just go it alone. It’s hard at first, but you’ll be proud of yourself when you get the work done. It might seem like I’m being harsh, but in the long run you’ll realize that I’m right, unless you’re trying to scale to the highest levels.
Thanks for paying attention.
