Keep Moving

Getting into a partnership with other students can pose a bit of a hazard sometimes, trying to juggle schedules full of assignments, classes and whatnot. Fortunately, we’re managing to push off a bit of the schedule conflicts by getting things going during summer when we don’t have to think about school. It’s still pretty hard and after only a couple of weeks into this and talking to some people, I’ve heard some good advice.

Set a time

I generally think that since we’re all moving in the same direction with the same goal in mind, we’re bound to meet up and get things done. Not true. We set consistent times every week to make sure everyone’s there; it's way easier to proactively book a meeting into an empty schedule than a full one after the fact.

Set an agenda

Working with friends is sweet, but sometimes things can take longer than they need to – or never get done at all. Having a framework for the meeting makes everyone accountable to getting things done (It's like working under pressure). Set a simple agenda of what needs to be accomplished and discussed in that time. Most importantly, when everyone leaves, they should have a good idea of what they’re doing before the next time you get together.

Be committed

This is by far the most important and probably the one I am most likely to fall victim to. Running a business doesn’t have to run your life, but it's going to take some sacrifice, and everyone should be willing to make them. I’m definitely prepared to miss out on doing things that I enjoy for the sake of this, but the last business we worked on, I definitely wasn’t.

Don’t wait around

Being in a partnership is nice because you have someone there to hold accountable. But the door can swing both ways; it's easy to slip into that “Well, they’re not doing anything, so I’ll just wait for them to get going”. Buckle down and get things done; it’s a sacrifice and it's probably going to mean setting your pride in the corner for a bit, but it will be a great encouragement to your team and possibly, the life raft that keeps the entire plan from sinking in a pool of apathy.

Talk it out

Constant communication plays a big role in keeping things on track. If you’re a little ticked because you feel like people aren’t pulling their weight, then letting those feelings fester while you slave away isn’t setting the business up for success. There could be an explanation behind it; perhaps there’s been a miscommunication in terms of who is doing what.

These things are helping keep our business moving forward at a steady pace. When we’re not moving towards our goal, then I’m liable to get bored, apathetic and put things into question. As soon as you stop moving forward, you start moving backwards – there’s no such thing as stagnancy.