(Avoidable) Co-Founder Mistakes
Watch out for "co-founders of convenience" and other missteps
Below is an adaptation of a talk I gave on Mercury’s stage at TechCrunch Disrupt about what we’ve seen work — and fail — for co-founders at ODF.
If you’re exploring starting a startup and looking to find some of the missing pieces — co-founders, ideas, early customers, etc — check out the 24th cohort of ODF that kicks off in late February in SF. It’s an intensive weeklong IRL onboarding to a lifelong community of builders. Check out alumni on our Top Companies of 2024 list.
Most startups don't fail because they can't build something people want. They fail because they run out of hope. That usually happens because the co-founders can't work together.
The co-founder relationship is the foundation everything else is built on. Get it wrong, and everything else gets harder. There are clear patterns in what works and what doesn't. Here's what I've learned from watching thousands of co-founder relationships through ODF.
The Five-Year Question
Before diving into skills or equity splits, ask yourself: "Do I actually want to work with this person for the next five (or more) years?" They'll likely be the person you spend the most time with over the next few years. Ideas change. Markets change. People rarely do.
Avoid the Co-Founder of Convenience
Don't pick someone just because they're available. Many founders rush into partnerships out of fear of going it alone or pressure to have a "complete" founding team. This usually ends badly. It's especially painful when you realize this a year in, after equity has vested and relationships have soured.
Alignment Over EVERYTHING.
Have explicit conversations about what success looks like. One founder might be thrilled with a $1M ARR business while another would see anything short of a billion-dollar outcome as failure. Some might need quick traction while others are willing to spend years finding product-market fit. These conversations feel awkward, but they're far less painful than discovering misalignment a year in.
What to Look For
The best co-founder relationships share some clear traits: comfort with disagreement (especially early), high agency (they make things happen without being asked), natural resourcefulness, and mutual inspiration. If you don't feel elevated by working with someone, they probably shouldn't be your co-founder.
Stop Trying to Convince People
A common trap is trying to convince someone to be your co-founder. If you find yourself repeatedly selling someone on leaving their stable job to join you, step back. The best co-founder relationships start with mutual excitement and conviction. When someone is weighing a stable tech job against joining your startup, they're telling you something important about their risk tolerance and commitment level.
The Solo Option
Sometimes going solo is the right choice — for good or even just to start. It's better to start alone than rush into a bad partnership. Solo founders can make faster initial, attract better co-founders later, and maintain clarity of vision. Many successful companies started this way.
Remember: The people you start with matter more than the idea you start with. Many successful companies look nothing like they did at the beginning. But great co-founders can navigate those pivots together because they're aligned on the fundamentals of what they want to build and how they want to build it.
Choose carefully. It's easier to change your idea than to change your co-founder.
I also wrote an additional in-depth guide about co-founders for Mercury’s blog.