Who Should You Consider To Be Called A Cofounder?
I have a really simple rule for who is a founder and who isn’t a founder. If the person joins before the company receives funding, then the person is a founder.
The amount of work, modeling, planing, and strategy you’ve done are irrelevant.
Ego and greed are the enemy of success when it comes to starting a company. Yes, it’s great that the company was your vision, but the more important thing now is will the company be successful.
The success of your company, in large part, depends upon your ability to be generous.
You’re worried about who will get the credit. Trust me, you’ll get the credit regardless of how many founders you have because you’re the CEO. And you’ll also get all the blame because you’re the CEO.
Your generosity in sharing the credit with your cofounders and the rest of the employees is how you build loyalty. Quite frankly, it’s the difference between having a team and having employees.
Right now, it sounds like you have employees. And:
- Employees quit, and…
- Employees aren’t bought in, and…
- Employees only want a paycheck
Don’t you want to have a team instead of a bunch of employees?
When you have a team, you have:
- A team will not quit when things go wrong, and…
- A team will work above and beyond what’s required, and…
- A team will show their loyalty to the company again and again.
But all of this is dependent upon you and the culture you build. Sharing the spotlight with others is the first step of many you will need to take.
For more, read: Why Your Startup Culture Is The Key To Your Company's Success
Do You Want To Grow Your Business? Maybe I Can Help. Click Here.
View original answer on Quora.
Picture: Depositphotos