Assume you achieve total world domination and they make a movie about you. Visualize the narrative arc. Would you think "This guy deserves to be the hero or co-hero of this movie?" If not, you don't want them to be a cofounder.
There are fairly few movies where someone bestows money, a name or an idea on the interesting characters and ends up being really important to the plot.
You want Aragorn, not Elrond, as your cofounder. (Naturally I think of geeks as hobbits.)
P.S. Your co-founder should say the same about you. If you're a tool rather than a partner, fleeeeeeeee.
I'm undecided about "visualizing the movie they make about you." I think every startuper who has seen "The Social Network" or "Pirates of the Silicon Valley" has done this.
However, I'm leaning on considering it an anti pattern because it borders on a pathological amount of ego.
A better rubric in my mind is, "Can I picture this person in my daily life, for the next decade?" as a slightly more sane variant of this test.
Comments
Assume you achieve total world domination and they make a movie about you. Visualize the narrative arc. Would you think "This guy deserves to be the hero or co-hero of this movie?" If not, you don't want them to be a cofounder.
There are fairly few movies where someone bestows money, a name or an idea on the interesting characters and ends up being really important to the plot.
You want Aragorn, not Elrond, as your cofounder. (Naturally I think of geeks as hobbits.)
P.S. Your co-founder should say the same about you. If you're a tool rather than a partner, fleeeeeeeee.
I'm undecided about "visualizing the movie they make about you." I think every startuper who has seen "The Social Network" or "Pirates of the Silicon Valley" has done this.
However, I'm leaning on considering it an anti pattern because it borders on a pathological amount of ego.
A better rubric in my mind is, "Can I picture this person in my daily life, for the next decade?" as a slightly more sane variant of this test.