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Hey, I’m Tim! ☕

This is hands-down the most raw and authentic reflection on a cofounder breakup I’ve ever come across.

In this video, Charlie Houpert from the Charisma on Command YouTube channel opens up. No filter, no fluff.

His story is more than a post-mortem. It’s a wake-up call for you.

I’ve pulled some excerpts you can learn from, no matter where you are on your journey.

Sorry, Charlie

Charlie and his cofounder started as best friends, inseparable for over two decades.

But as their business grew, so did their differences.

What began as subtle frustrations eventually became a deep divide.

Resentment from unaddressed business issues was surfacing in other areas of their friendship, like when they played video games together.

They hit a stalemate. A painful place for a 50/50 cofoundership.

After years of avoiding tough conversations, they finally had an explosive fallout.

Charlie snapped.

It was never the same after that.

They never had the same closeness as they did back in high school.

Lessons Learned

It’s easy to look at this and assume you should never start a company with your best friend.

That’s untrue, because they likely wouldn’t have come this far if they didn’t have that foundation.

On the flip side, merely being best friends is insufficient to becoming great cofounders.

You also have to:

1. Be clear on each other’s internal values and motivations.

2. Consistently reevaluate expectations and responsibilities.

3. Have regular “emotional debt” chats to clear the air.

A good cofoundership isn’t 50/50.

It’s 60/60.

How I Can Help

You don’t want what happened to Charlie to happen to you.

Everybody harps on having good communication. It’s the single most important thing if you want to increase the likelihood of a solid cofoundership.

But what does that look like in practice?

Asking questions isn’t enough. Asking the right questions isn’t even enough.

You have to:

• ask the right question

• to the right person

• at the right time

• and have the right expectations for what kind of answer to expect

If that sounds complicated, let me help you shortcut it.

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Thanks y’all,

Tim He

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