There are many times that women business owners think about all the work that they need to do to run their business and then dream about having a partner to get everything done. For some, this is about having someone do the work they do not enjoy doing – ________________(insert your own less than desirable tasks (i.e.) sales, accounting, etc. But for many, it is really about having someone to be accountable to, someone to bounce ideas off of, someone to give you a little nudge when you need to remember to work on things that may not have an immediate deadline but are important for building your business.

Last week, at our monthly Talking Shop meeting where IGC members can drop in to give and receive feedback to one another about a pressing business issue, this same topic came up. An IGC member spoke about feeling overwhelmed by all of the work of running her own business, knowing that all aspects of the work are important to ramp up her business but feeling like it was difficult to get the work done. After a little poking and prodding in the form of questions, she articulated that part of what was challenging was that she did not feel an immediate sense of urgency in the form of a deadline around many of her tasks. It was easy for the day to go by and she did not get to many of the “to do’s” on her list. The many nods in the room demonstrated that this entrepreneur was not alone. So many of the business owners that we know have felt this way at one (or many) point(s). And this brought her to the thinking that perhaps she needed a partner.

Serendipitously, another IGC member, Galia Gichon, founder of Down To Earth Finance was in attendance and she shared her solution to this problem that she had experienced in the early stages of her business 7 years ago. The solution was the “business buddy system” and it was a system that she co-created with her buddy, Erica Ecker, founder of The Spacialist . Both women are incredibly successful entrepreneurs who credit much of their early success to their buddy system. Simply put, they would meet weekly for 1-2 hours and they would each have an opportunity to check in, report back, solicit feedback and make goals for the upcoming week. And all social chatting was halted – unless they had time after their scheduled check-in. Galia and Erica met for over 8 years and helped one another build their businesses – and they are still great friends today!

Here’s Erica’s take on the business buddy system:

When Galia and I met, neither of us had business partners yet we still wanted some of the benefits we thought having a partner would provide.  So we became each other’s business buddy. Since we’ve met regularly for over 8 years, we have a strong understanding of each other’s personalities which allows us to give thorough advice in a way that is very useful to the other one. I think three of the keys to this relationship’s success is the consistency of meetings, a willingness to be extremely honest with each other, (both in sharing and feedback) as well as the absence of judgement.   At the beginning we were pretty strict with dividing up the time and that really keep the priority focus on business. Because we’ve been in this constant dialogue for so many years, we know exactly where the other tends to repeat negative patterns and can highlight it when we notice it.  That ends up having a very positive impact on short term goals as well as long term ones.  Just by knowing I can call, email and text her any time for speedy feedback, insights and support has added a huge level of relief and comfort to my life.  I feel like I can say anything to her and I never hesitate reaching out.  She is an integral part to the success of my business!

Here’s Galia’s take on the business buddy system:

Being business buddies with Erica Ecker has added a tremendous amount of fun, accountability and honest to working by myself.  I don’t think I could have achieved a fraction of the success without her on board!  I especially love it when she tells me within 30 seconds I should not take on a project that I really want to take on but know I shouldn’t it!

So – hold off on searching for a partner and perhaps, find a business buddy to work with to help achieve your (and your buddy’s business goals)!

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Posted by Amy Abrams