You built an operating system for the company. Now build one for the two of you.
Cofounder coaching works on the relationship that runs the company: how you decide, how you disagree, and what you avoid saying to each other. Most of it happens with both of you in the room.
Name the fight underneath the fights.
We start with the diagnostic and a debrief with both of you. Then we map the one argument that keeps returning, what each of you needs from it, and where you stop hearing each other.
Have the conversation you've been avoiding.
In joint sessions, you have the conversations you've been putting off about roles, decision rights, equity, pace and trust. My job is to keep them honest and keep them from turning into the old fight.
Build an operating system for the relationship.
You leave with agreements you both wrote: who decides what, how you disagree, how you raise hard things early, and how you repair when it goes wrong. Then we test them against real decisions.
We work together and one on one.
Most of the work happens with both founders in the room, because that is where the pattern shows up. Each of you also gets private sessions, because some things need to be said out loud once before they can be said to your cofounder.
A typical month
- Two joint sessions with both cofounders
- One individual session for each cofounder
- Support between sessions when a hard conversation comes up
- A re-run of the diagnostic at 90 days, so you can see what changed
Engagements run month to month. You stay because it's working, not because of a contract.
Here is what pairs walk away with.
Faster decisions
Clear decision rights mean you stop relitigating the same calls. Decisions take hours instead of weeks.
Disagreement that helps
You learn to turn a flat "you're wrong" into "tell me more," so the tension between you starts improving the work.
A shared language
You get simple, shared words for what's happening between you, so you can name it in the moment instead of a week later.
Hard things said early
Problems get raised while they are still small, instead of after they have become resentment.
Skills that travel
The same skills show up outside the partnership. Founders use them to negotiate with investors, to sell, and to lead their teams.
A team that can tell
Your leadership team stops managing around the two of you. Your board notices too.
The Guild is a small group for cofounder pairs.
Pilots call it zero zero when there's no visibility and no ceiling. Every founding team hits that moment. In the Guild, a small cohort of venture-funded cofounder pairs meets twice a month with me and Arthur Levitan to work through it together.
Pairs often start in the Guild and add private coaching when they want to go deeper. If you'd like to know when the next cohort opens, book a call and mention the Guild.
Here is what founders ask first.
Is this couples therapy for cofounders?
No. Therapy looks backward and treats the individual. This work is about how the two of you run a company together, right now. We talk about feelings when they are driving decisions, and we stay focused on the business.
Is this mediation?
Mediation settles a dispute. Coaching changes the pattern that keeps producing disputes. If you are already negotiating a separation, I'll tell you honestly whether coaching can still help.
What if only one of us wants to do this?
That's common. Start by having each of you take the diagnostic. The gap in your answers usually makes the case better than either of you can.
We're not in crisis. Is it too early?
The best time is before the fight gets expensive. Healthy pairs use this work to stay that way through a raise, a hiring spree or a pivot.
Will you tell our investors what we discuss?
No. Everything stays between me and the founders. If an investor referred you, they only hear what you choose to tell them.
What does it cost?
Pricing depends on your stage and how much support you need. A typical engagement is two joint sessions and one individual session for each founder every month, month to month, with no minimum. We'll go through the numbers on a free 30-minute call.
Start with the diagnostic.
Each of you answers ten questions on your own. Then compare.