Test co-founder compatibility through short collaborative projects before committing
Before starting a company together, work on smaller projects with potential co-founders to evaluate compatibility. This reveals how you handle stress, make decisions, and resolve disagreements without the pressure of a full commitment.
When to use
When evaluating potential co-founders before formally starting a company together
Don't do this
Committing to co-founders based solely on credentials, mutual friends, or shared excitement about an idea without testing how you work together
5 Founders Who Did This
Shah and Halligan intentionally collaborated on every MIT Sloan project to simulate working together full-time before starting HubSpot
Did pre-commitment 'pre-marital counseling' with co-founder Alexa including working with a therapist specializing in founder dynamics and discussing values, fears, and breaking points
Recommends evaluating mission, growth opportunity, and team quality before committing, with team being the most critical - 'the people around us change us for good or worse'
All three founders had previous startup experience together and separately, allowing them to evaluate co-founder compatibility through real prior work
Became best friends in college 2015, started working together on podcast 2020, then agency. Dylan is perfectionist who sweats details, Henry ships at 80% quality - complementary styles