Thread by @ai

1/ I’ve been really inspired by @ryan_caldbeck and wanted to shed some light on one aspect of startup life - co-founders.

2/ One of the first people to advise me on “not going at this alone” was @semil. My advice (today) would be, “build a company with someone who you want to be working with every single day”.

3/ I have been super fortunate to work with the talented and amazing @vivchan. Viv and I have known each other for > 10 years, and we worked together for about 4 of those years. To give you a sense for what our relationship looks like today:

4/ My daughter calls @vivchan, “aunt Viv”. My wife talks about @vivchan like she is family. In fact, everyone in my family knows who Viv is. She is #3 on my “Favorites” list on my phone, and she is also our emergency contact.

5/ Viv had a set of keys to our old condo. When my wife and i were having car trouble, Viv loaned us her car. When Viv was recently on her honeymoon, she told me that she is going to largely be offline, but, she would answer my calls (I didn’t once call, text, or Slack!)

6/ I remember reading that back in the day, the founders of Airbnb used to do dinners on Sunday nights. From my experience of doing occasional dinners like these with @vivchan (+ @creasy, @shreyac) - this isn’t a scheduled “meeting", this is more like an evening out w friends

7/ ^^ These are the little things that make our relationship beyond just a professional one. Viv & I might be an extreme case, but there is a high degree of trust between us. And that bleeds over heavily into our work.

8/ When I see posts from entrepreneurs wondering how they can "recruit their co-founder”, I ask, do you see yourself hugging your co-founder at the end of the day before you go home?

9/ Do you see yourself being your most vulnerable self with them? As an example, both @vivianch and I have cried on each others' shoulders. This shit will matter when you are in the trenches.

10/ Viv & I have a strong relationship, and that does not mean we do not disagree with one another. We are both opinionated and want what is best for our users, but our foundation lets us communicate with each other freely.

11/ Today is @vivchan’s birthday - Happy Birthday to my sister from another mother!!