There is plenty written on the subject of choosing a good business partner. Most experienced folks will tell you that it’s pretty much like choosing a life partner – choose the right one and you can have a blissful life, but choose the wrong one and you can experience a bitter marriage in all its glory. So how do you go about finding the right one for your business?

Entrepreneur.com offers some helpful advice in the form of 10 Questions to Ask. Before you commit to someone for the long-term, it is important that you have a good understanding of their financial situation, personal circumstances and commitment to business.

Even more important is that you align in terms of your vision and values. After all, no venture is likely to succeed if you and your business partner do not see eye to eye on matters of integrity, and on how you want to shape the business in the years to come. In this regard, the SmallBusiness Online Community has an insightful piece that outlines 10 Steps To Choosing The Right Partner, including a reminder that you should have complementary skill sets, and be able to evaluate qualifications without emotion.

Let me add a few more points to that…

1. In my view, for a partnership to work in the long run, both partners must also feel a sense of dependence on each other. At some point in time, things will get tougher than you imagine, and emotions will run high. In such circumstances, if one thinks that the other is expendable or easily replaceable, the alliance is in trouble.

2. Another critical element that can wreak havoc on your plans (especially if you are just starting-up), is bias for action that is out of sync. It is crucial that co-founders of a startup are aligned in terms of the timeline they have in mind, when taking the business from idea to execution.

If one of you is all set for a “beta launch” in a couple of weeks, while the other wants to take months to “develop the idea” and create slide decks / worksheets before taking it to the market, it just won’t work. In most cases, startups need to prioritize “shipping date” above all else. And, all its co-founders need to be on the same page, when it comes to a bias for action.

3. Finally, there is the ‘Why’ of it all. I believe the most important element of all is the purpose that drives each Founder. Your Why may be quite different from your partner’s, and that’s ok as long as the two are not in conflict. However, if they are incompatible, the resulting conflict can rapidly drive a wedge between the folks involved, leading to catastrophic failure for the venture.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, and finding the right business partner for any venture is likely to be an arduous and complex task. But, if you do it right, the reward should be well worth the effort.

May the force be with you.