Long Distance Cofoundership

How to see eye-to-eye when you're not face-to-face

Tim He
September 08, 2024 • Est. Reading Time: 4 minutes

Hey, I’m Tim! ☕

Looks like last week's deep dive into a closer-to-home company hit the mark for you. Let’s double down and do that again.

This time, we’re talking about a cofoundership that might feel familiar: the classic business cofounder and technical cofounder combo.

But there’s a twist — they’ve never met before.

Here’s the one thing to remember: distance doesn’t separate people, silence does.

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Let’s get into it ⤵

“Awareness precedes change.” — Robin Sharma, the guy who wrote about monks or maybe just really early mornings

Art by Mary Amato

Circles cofounders Kevin & Evan raised $400k+ and launched their app without ever meeting in real life. But is that the right way?
Despite both being in the US, they’ve made the bold move to channel every cent into product development. No meetups just yet.
However, they understand the importance of their cofoundership so they compensate by being hyper-intentional with their conversations.
They’re not against meeting. In fact, they’re thinking about getting together as a team to celebrate their next big milestone.

You must create space and time for frequent non-work conversations. This is nonnegotiable. They’re your cofounder, not your accountant.
Weigh the potential reward against the given level of risk. Is the extended engineering timeline worth the lack of IRL interaction?
In other words, understand tradeoffs. What works for one company might not work for the next so don’t rely on generic advice.
It works for Kevin & Evan because they know when to be involved in each others’ work and when to stay out of each other’s way.

Psst… enjoying this? Share this link with a friend. You could save a cofoundership.

Valuing convenience over connection is like valuing sensitivity over truth. It’s easier at first but it becomes a dangerous, slippery slope.
I've cofounded a company remotely before, but only after working in person first. I wouldn’t start remote unless I knew them really well.
The cofoundership profoundly shapes company culture. I’m curious to see how remote cofounders influence this over the next 5-10 years.
Remote cofounders: ever wonder if it could be better in person? Roommate cofounders: ever want to get away from them?

Want a second, third, fourth, fifth or sixth opinion? Those are links to discussions on whether or not you should cofound remotely.
Startups Gallery handpicks the most promising, early-stage companies every week. Maybe yours could be featured next.
Tickets for Shitpitch events are still available but selling fast. Pitch or back a startup. I’ll be at the Dallas event on September 10.
Check out Thentrepreneur for breakdowns from top startups and find out what’s trending with other founders at Foundcy.

Make sure your cofounder sees this — either pass it along or get them to subscribe. A solid relationship takes everyone's effort.

Looking for a cofounder coach? Hit reply.

PS: I hopped on calls with some of you this week and a few dubbed me “the cofounder guy” so I’m running with it.

Tim He
Founder & CEO