Episode Seventeen | You Don't Have To Do It All Alone
In this episode of TopBranch, Ruth Ann Janson and Beth Bender share their firsthand insights on building successful business partnerships, drawing from both their work with clients and their own experience as partners at The Dove Agency. They discuss the importance of finding partners who share your energy and values, embracing trust and healthy disagreement, and setting ego aside to create a collaborative business where each person's strengths can thrive.
Hosted by Ruth Ann Janson and Beth Bender
Navigating Business Partnerships
Ruth Ann Janson
Hi, everyone. We are back for another episode of TopBranch.
Beth Bender
And we're together this time.
Ruth Ann Janson
That's right. I'm Ruth Ann Janson.
Beth Bender
I'm Beth Bender.
Ruth Ann Janson
And we are here today; we are going to talk about something this actually comes up quite a bit.
Beth Bender
Yeah.
Ruth Ann Janson
You know, we have clients, you know, dozens and dozens of interior designers primarily as our clients, and many of them, their business structure is a partnership-
Beth Bender
Yeah
Ruth Ann Janson
... or one or more people that are the business owners. And so we give advice a lot of times when people are in that stage of, I've had my own business for a while, and I'm looking to possibly bring one or two more people into that. In some ownership structures, these all vary; we're not getting into that nitty-gritty.
Beth Bender
[laughs]
Ruth Ann Janson
It's just more the idea of how to navigate a business partnership. And in addition to advising our clients on this, we also at The Dove Agency have three owners in our company-
Beth Bender
Yep.
Ruth Ann Janson
... and so, we have some personal experience to add into this mix as well.
Beth Bender
Absolutely. And that's why we kind of needed to be sitting next to each other.
Ruth Ann Janson
Yes. I think it's much more authentic.
Finding the Right Business Partner
Beth Bender
But when we started the partnership for The Dove Agency, we... I will say it has worked spectacularly, because we made the decision that, you know, we weren't going to necessarily look for somebody who just had skills that we didn't have-
Ruth Ann Janson
Mm-hmm.
Beth Bender
... but instead look for somebody that matched our energy. And when Kenda and I first started the business, we matched each other's energy. It was wonderful. And when we realized we definitely wanted to bring in a third partner, trying to find somebody to match that same energy, that same excitement, that same desire to meet the goals that we wanted to meet-
Ruth Ann Janson
Mm-hmm.
Beth Bender
...that's what we looked for. And what was great about it is when you do that, you most often can find out that you each have individual areas of genius, or each have individual areas of, you know, expertise.
Ruth Ann Janson
Expertise. Mm-hmm.
Beth Bender
And so, that's where it's really fun as a partnership to then start kind of divvying up the work a little bit.
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah. I mean, we were talking about this kind of prepping a little bit, very little bit. These are mostly impromptu, but one of the things we were talking about is how it's that energy that's irreplaceable.
Beth Bender
Yeah.
Ruth Ann Janson
You can hire skills, but the energy itself, like that's a thing that's either there or it's not.
Beth Bender
Right. Right.
Three Qualities Every Successful Partnership Needs
Ruth Ann Janson
And so, to get kind of specific, we like to have these little practical takeaways here. Three kinds of things to be thinking about if you're in this, you know, kind of mode of possibly bringing somebody into your business is, you know, somebody that is going to be energized in areas that deplete you. Like, they like sales calls, and you like to grind behind your computer-
Beth Bender
[laughs]
Ruth Ann Janson
... looking at numbers. That might be one example. I think the other thing is you're going to have to have a lot of trust.
Beth Bender
Yes.
Ruth Ann Janson
And so that's something that was nice in our case, because we were all, you know, social and friends outside of work-
Beth Bender
Yep.
Ruth Ann Janson
... and so there was already some trust there. I think that that's probably the hardest one to, you know, have hitting the ground running-
Beth Bender
Mm-hmm.
Ruth Ann Janson
... if you're bringing in somebody brand new and you haven't known them previously.
Beth Bender
Right.
Ruth Ann Janson
So that-
Beth Bender
Absolutely.
Ruth Ann Janson
... that one is something that obviously takes some time. And then the third thing is, you know, bringing in somebody that is, you're not going to be able... You're not going to be afraid to tell each other when they're maybe wrong-
Beth Bender
Right.
Ruth Ann Janson
... or to basically disagree.
Beth Bender
Right.
Ruth Ann Janson
You have to be able to do those things-
Beth Bender
Exactly.
Ruth Ann Janson
... or it's not going to work. [laughs]
Beth Bender
Absolutely. [laughs]
Ruth Ann Janson
Because there's going to be lots of disagreements.
Beth bender
Yes. Yes, and it's how you handle them. It's how... It, can you do it in a way that's, like you just said-
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah.
Beth Bender
... trustworthy, and you already have that, that, that foundation there.
Shifting Roles as Your Business Grows
Ruth Ann Janson
Right. And I think one of the things too is, you know, we wanted to talk through an example of if you bring somebody in and maybe some, some tasks and some roles are sort of shifting around.
Beth bender
Mm-hmm.
Ruth Ann Janson
And one of the things we were talking about was the sales calls at The Dove Agency.
Beth Bender
Yep.
Ruth Ann Janson
So, let's go into that for a minute, minute.
Letting Go of Ownership Without Letting Go of Excellence
Beth Bender
So, when we started The Dove Agency, I was doing pretty much all of the new client acquisition. I was the one having the first conversation with any new clients that were coming into the agency. And so, you know, when Ruth Ann came along, it was natural at that point, because she was taking on the role of president, she was handling really all these client relationships once they were onboarded and hit the ground running. And so it became a much more natural task for Ruth Ann to start having that first conversation, and that was something that I really enjoyed.
Ruth Ann Janson
Mm. Yeah.
Beth Bender
I loved having those conversations. But you have to look at the organization and say, "Well, what is best for the organization?" And then look and say, "Hey, you know what? Here's somebody that both matches the energy-
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah. [laughs]
Beth Bender
... that's needed for that particular task-
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah.
Beth Bender
... and will do a great job of it," and you kind of have to let it go and go, "It's okay. I don't-
Ruth Ann Janson
Right.
Beth Bender
... I don't have to be doing this."
Ruth Ann Janson
This gets into the no-ego thing.
Beth Bender
Exactly.
Ruth Ann Janson
But then on the flip side of that, just as the kind of the recipient of this new task that somebody else had been, you know, fulfilling before-
Beth Bender
Mm-hmm.
Ruth Ann Janson
... it's also ha- not having ego and not being afraid to ask questions like, "How did you handle this before?" I mean, even if you're coming in as an owner and have experience, and you're obviously able to lead a business, it doesn't mean that you, you know, don't ask questions-
Beth Bender
Right.
Ruth Ann Janson
... and you are too prideful to say- ... the sales call went a little south. How have you handled that in the past? And, and examples of also people that are still reaching out to you because you're, you know, obviously one of the founders, and you were there at the onset when all these sales calls were happening, and that's happened multiple occasions-
Beth Bender
Yep.
Ruth Ann Janson
... where people reach out to you, and we've had to kind of tag-team things.
Staying Flexible as a Leadership Team
Beth Bender
Yep. I mean, it just happened probably a couple months ago. I had somebody call me, who I had had a call with them five years previously, and they weren't ready to outsource their work at that time. And so when they called me back, five years later, they called my number that we had talked on when we had our call. And so it came to me personally. And, you know, you can't be so rigid and have such strong boundaries that you say, "Oh, that's not my job anymore. I- you can't talk to me. You gotta call, you gotta call somebody else."
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah.
Beth Bender
"You’ve got to call my partner." You have to be a little bit more flexible and say, "You know what? This is a previous relationship that I had. I had the conversation. I enjoyed having that conversation. It was, it was fun-
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah.
Beth Bender
... to kind of get to do that again." But then when I hung up, I called Ruth Ann and was able to say, "Ruth Ann, listen-
Ruth Ann Janson
Let's, we're going to tag-team this.
Beth Bender
... tag-team it.
Ruth Ann Janson
Right. And I think just along those lines, it's basically the idea that other people can do things as well as you can.
Beth Bender
Yes. [laughs]
Ruth Ann Janson
Like, that's like something we hate to admit.
Beth Bender
Uh-huh. Exactly.
Ruth Ann Janson
But the truth is, you know, if you have gotten to the point where you've vetted this person, and they're checking all the boxes, and you're considering bringing them into-
Beth bender
Yeah.
Ruth Ann Janson
... your business, you are going to have to kind of step back a little bit-
Beth Bender
Mm-hmm.
Ruth Ann Janson
... and be willing to let some of those things fall on another person's plate. But, again, with the idea that there's continual collaboration, and nobody is too rigid in their lanes to either not take on a task or-
Beth Bender
Right.
Ruth Ann Janson
... to give, give something up. And especially when, well, the sales is a different example, but there are times when you might not want to give something up.
Beth Bender
Yes. [laughs]
Ruth Ann Janson
So, let's like navigate that and how, how we've handled that.
Making Room for What Brings You Joy
Beth Bender
Yep. I mean, I think that with me, you know, especially going to a position of more of, you know, a support-
Ruth Ann Janson
Mm-hmm.
Beth Bender
... to you, and in that partner role, there were some things, like we've been working really hard on AI at this moment.
Ruth Ann Janson
Right. Yep.
Beth Bender
And so there are some things with that that I actually really enjoy and I want to do. And so I've been able to say, you know, "Hey, I, I get a lot of joy out of doing this."
Ruth Ann Janson
Mm-hmm.
Beth Bender
"Can I take this and, and run with it, and take ownership of this?" And I think that's where-
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah.
Beth Bender
... you know, if you're not coming in and saying, "I'm taking this because, you know, I don't think you're going to do a good enough job on it," or, "I'm going to be better at it." Instead, it gives me joy.
Ruth Ann Janson
Yes.
Beth Bender
And that's, I think that's where you can-
Ruth Ann Janson
And we want each other to have joy in their job. [laughs]
Beth Bender
Yeah. That's where you, I think you can navigate that with your partner is understanding that, you know, you do want to find that enjoyment in your work and in what you do.
Why Partnership Can Be Worth It
Ruth Ann Janson
And I think just to kind of close too, I mean, with so many, you know, solopreneurs, I've had so many conversations with them, and it is a hard decision to bring somebody on or to stay kind of on towing the, towing the road yourself. But it is a very lonely, it's a lonely path, right? If you're owning the company by yourself and even if you have, you're surrounded by a team of five or seven or nine, nobody really is ever going to care about that business as much as the owners do, and so like that's kind of my perspective of an, a little bit of a loose encouragement to, if this is even, like, in your realm of considering-
Beth Bender
Mm-hmm.
Ruth Ann Janson
... pursue it. And if somebody is presented to you in a way where you're like, "Hmm, maybe that individual would be you know, a good person to bring in," don't, don't push that back a- and, and immediately dismiss that because you've been doing something by yourself for so long. Because there is so much kind of joy in the collaboration and-
Beth Bender
Yes.
Ruth Ann Janson
... in having those conversations with the other individuals that care as much as you do. And it does; it is lonely by yourself.
Beth Bender
Right.
Ruth Ann Janson
Like, when either one of us aren't available, it's, it's a, it's a har- it's harder-
Beth Bender
Yes.
Ruth Ann Janson
... and it's lonelier. [laughs]
Beth Bender
Exactly.
Ruth Ann Janson
And we're all, like, trying to kind of, you know, do this together and, you know, be, be our, be the best we can be.
Quote of the Day
Beth Bender
Absolutely. Absolutely. So I hope that gives you some encouragement as you think about going forward and either making the partnership that you have even better or trying to look for a new partner. So we have a little quote. You want to do our quote?
Ruth Ann Janson
Sure.
Beth Bender
Okay.
Ruth Ann Janson
I love quotes. Well, I think you should do it 'cause I was rambling, and we were kind of like [laughs] We kind of like be equal here.
Beth Bender
Okay. Oh, gosh, that's such a good part.
Ruth Ann Janson
That's... Oh my gosh, I didn't even... [laughs] There we go.
Beth Bender
All right. I can do... This is from Mother Teresa, by the way.
Ruth Ann Janson
This is so, I love this.
Beth Bender
Yeah, I love this quote.
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah.
Beth Bender
This is Mother Teresa. "I can do things you cannot. You can do things I cannot. Together we can do great things."
Ruth Ann Janson
Yeah.
Beth Bender
So, there's your encouragement for the day. All right.
Ruth Ann Janson
See y'all next time.
Beth Bender
Thanks, guys. Bye.
Ruth Ann Janson
Bye-bye.