Dealing with a bully as a partner can wreak havoc on a business.
The most effective way to deal with one is to not go into business together in the first place.
But every now and then we run into a partner who refuses to listen to other points of view, puts his own interests ahead of those of the partnership, and generally wreaks havoc on the business.First, plenty of articles warn about choosing partners carefully. I won't belabor that point, but it's worth noting once more that there's virtually no business decision that will affect you more than the decision of who you go into business with — choose well.
Second, have clear, detailed and well thought out organizational and governing documents all partners agree to at the outset. These documents should cover such basic issues as: who gets to be an owner; who is management and how management decisions are made; general business objectives; what happens if the company needs more capital; how you avoid or address disagreements; and how and when you will make the decision to sell, merge, dissolve or otherwise exit the business or the partnership.
The third strategy follows logically from the second: Follow those governing documents. The easiest way to handle a partnership disagreement is to follow the rules you've laid out.
The final strategy is more of an admonition: Do not allow your difficult partner to bully you into making bad decisions or otherwise treat you or the business unfairly and then claim to be a victim.
I see this occasionally, and it is not an excuse to simply say your partner is a bad person and made you do these things. You're the caretaker of your business, and no one said it would be easy.
Stand up to the bully!
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