I chose the wrong partners a few times early in my career. The first step to fix this trend for me was to understand why I was picking the wrong partners. I realized it came down to my own inability to trust myself and what I was capable of accomplishing.

That's not to say I can do it all myself. I've also come to appreciate the importance of connection more than ever. This might seem like a paradox. Let me try and explain how this worked for me.

Early in my career I felt smart and capable. I was also afraid of trusting myself and my ability. This caused me to suppress my true qualities. This led me to selling myself short.

I felt the need to rely on the wrong people for the wrong things. In one extreme example, a board member of a company I was founding suggested I become the CEO, rather than the COO.

I told him all the reasons why I thought my co-founder would make a better CEO than me. The results were somewhat disastrous. We burned through a lot of money, really fast and the company folded. I still hold myself accountable for not stepping up and doing what I was capable of doing as CEO.

I've learned a lot since then. I've learned to trust myself. I've learned to recognize my strengths and weaknesses. I was always good at identifying weaknesses. Learning to address my strengths took time.

Why?

Because once you identify your strengths, it's necessary to act on, not suppress them. Learning to deal with my fear of embracing my own potential has helped me act on my strengths and not suppress them.

I'm not so quick to rely on others now. At the same time, I consciously seek out partners who have skills that complement mine. I also look for partners who share similar values. Finding the value match can be harder than finding the skills complement.

Finding the right match takes time. I'm more patient now, too. I used to favor progress and speed over everything else. This also led to choosing the wrong partner. Now I'm mindful of taking more time than may be initially comfortable to finding the right partner. Rediscovering the power of openness and connection helps me meet more potential partners.

Taking a more deliberate approach means saying no to people and opportunities. That means opportunities may take a little while to manifest. I'm convinced this investment in patience now will pay off in the long run.

Finding the right partner will increase your chances of becoming successful. It will help you enjoy the journey toward success too.

Best of luck on your search. I'd be happy to dig deeper into this with you on a call. My hope would be to help you avoid the mistakes I made and benefit from the discoveries too!