Ask a House Cleaner, Business Partner, Savvy Cleaner

Business Partner for House Cleaning Company?

“Should I have a business partner for my cleaning biz?” We Ask a House Cleaner about startup business, legal documents and a business partner. 

Angela Brown, The House Cleaning Guru gives tips on the expectations and boundaries of having a business partner. 

Who does what? Who is the person house cleaning and who is managing, or micromanaging? Small business is tough enough without partnerships. But if you choose one for your maid service, here’s to your success. 

Today’s sponsor is https://HouseCleaning360.com

If you own a house cleaning business do you have your fan page yet? #HouseCleaning360

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Hey there, I’m Angela Brown, and this is Ask a House Cleaner. This is a show where you get to ask a house cleaning question, and I get to help you find an answer.

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Question:

Should You Have a Business Partner for Your House Cleaning Company?

Business Partner facebook advertisingToday’s question comes from a house cleaner who just started her own business. We’re going to call this house cleaner Mary.

Now, Mary is paying for all the advertising and all the legal stuff to set up her business. Mary just went into business with her friend Paula. And pretty much Paula is doing nothing so far. 

There is a catch. Paula’s husband has jumped in and is micromanaging all the details that Mary is working on. And Mary’s paying for it.

So, she says, “Hey, what is the deal here and what am I supposed to do? Am I supposed to go into business with Paula’s husband? Am I supposed to just keep it to working with Paula? Do I even need a business partner? What is the best way to handle this situation?”

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Answer: Should You Have a Business Partner for Your House Cleaning Company?

Okay, well that’s an excellent question, and my answer is, it depends on how you set your business up.Business Partners housecleaning partners

There are a lot of house cleaners that lack confidence because of their inexperience. 

They figure that if they partner with someone else, they can figure stuff out together. 

That may be true, and there are partnerships that work, but there are challenges to this.

The Challenges of Having a Business Partner

Business Partner husband and wife argumentSo you don’t know what you’re doing. And chances are, the partner you take on doesn’t know what they are doing either. 

So instead of the two of you figuring it out together, now what you have opposing views. 

Somebody says, “Well I think it should be this way.”

And your partner’s husband jumps in and says, “No, it should be this way.”

And now you’re battling and dealing with a lot of weird energy that has no place in a startup business.

Thinking 2 Spacer Savvy CleanerDo You Need The Business Partner?

I don’t know. Maybe you do. Maybe they provide skills you don’t have.

And if that’s the case, then we’ve got to set boundaries from the beginning.Business Partner speed limit

Now, I know we talk a lot about boundaries and expectations. But boundaries rule everything.

If you get in your car and you drive down the road, there is a speed limit. That speed limit is a boundary.  

It says you cannot go faster than what we recommend on this sign. And if you do, you are prone to getting a speeding ticket.

What happens with a speeding ticket? You get points on your driver’s license. 

What happens when you accumulate a certain number of points? Either your insurance goes up or they revoke your driving privileges. Those are boundaries.

Zen Master Spacer Savvy CleanerBoundaries are Important if You Have a Business Partner

Boundaries are important because nobody knows how far they can push.

Now my guess is that Paula’s husband has overstepped his boundaries. You mentioned that you partnered with Paula, not Paula’s husband. 

So from the beginning, it’s important to set up those boundaries.

I’ve got a couple of books that I’m going to put in the resources section below. These books will help you brush up on your boundaries skills.

Boundaries are For Every Day

Business Partner raising childrenBoundaries are something we use every single day in every walk of life. 

You need boundaries if you are raising children or dealing with your in-laws. You need them if you are in a new relationship or you have been with for 15-20 years.

There are boundaries that we use for everything. And with no boundaries, there’s a lot of stress and a lot of chaos, and a lot of hurt feelings.

Boundaries Make Your Life Easier

Business Partner set boundariesSo if you have boundaries, you might come off as being professional. Or you might come off as obsessive. 

But I promise you this. Your life will be so much easier and it will have so much less stress. 

You will find so much joy, that you’re going to call me up and say, “Angela, oh my goodness. Thank you so much, I read the book on boundaries and my life has never been better.”

Life for me improved a thousand percent when I started setting boundaries, and it will for you too. You’ve got to have boundaries.

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Back to The Business Partner

Business Partner enthusiastic house cleanerSo do you need a business partner? I don’t know.

You can most likely find your own way if you are a small startup house cleaning business. There are so many resources and guidance out there. 

My recommendation would be unless there’s a need to bring on a business partner, don’t do it.

My Experience with a Business Partner

I have started several businesses in the past that had business partners. And there comes a time when you are doing all the work.

Business Partner bored house cleanerYou are passionate about your business, and a lot of times the other person is not as much. And so, they don’t share the joy of the journey. This happens even if you’ve clarified your expectations. 

So, you put in all the time, effort and energy. And it’s your resources and money, and then they just show up and want to collect a paycheck.

At some point, because you have boundaries, you have to cut them loose and send them on their way.

My Suggestion About Having a Business Partner

Business Partner red tapeBefore you get in the thick of it. And before it becomes this intertwined chaotic mess of he said, she said. Or in your case, “Well my husband said,” and all these things. Before this happens, cut the ties and move on.

Because if you’re running a business, your goal is to get from point A to point B. For every person that you bring in that has a say, you’re bringing in more red tape. 

If You Have a Business Partner – Who Has the Power?

So why would you give your power away to someone else? And yes, I’m talking about Paula’s husband, who doesn’t even belong in the business.

Yeah, he’s her husband, and so I’m sure he has an opinion. But for him to be micromanaging what you’re doing in your business, is wrong.

That’s not going to build goodwill, that’s not going to turn out well at all.

Time Out Spacer Savvy CleanerExceptions 

He does not belong in your business unless you have an agreement that he gets to be a consulting business partner. And you put him on the payroll, and he has a specific set of requirements and duties. And you let him know how far he’s allowed to go. 

If that’s not in place he doesn’t belong in your business.

If you run him out, you could offend Paula and now you have an antagonistic partner on your hands.

It might be easier just to go back to square one and do the business yourself.

Reasons to Have a Business Partner

Business Partner business partnersThere are lots of people that go into business together. 

But, please be clear about what your reasons are. Make sure they make logical sense to you, not just for today, but for the long haul. 

What does your business look like 5-10 years from now with this person as your business partner?

If you can’t this question, you should not have a business partner.

I Wish You the Best!

Anyway, that’s my two cents for today. Good luck with this situation, because it sounds like you’re already in a sticky mess.

So get out of the sticky mess as quick as possible. Clean up after yourself and move on your way. And do this as smooth and peaceful as possible using boundaries.

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Alrighty, and until we meet again, leave the world a cleaner place than when you found it. 

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About the Show

Learn how the show came to be, interesting facts about the show host, and other frequently asked questions about the show.

Resources For This Episode

How to Raise Your Personal Asking Price – http://amzn.to/2ihe7R7

Raise Your Prices, Attract More Business – http://amzn.to/2ilc6DH

Is My Price Too High? How To Raise The Price Of Your Product And Sell More Than Ever Before – http://amzn.to/2A40UX0

Raising Prices: How to successfully get your customers to pay more for your products – http://amzn.to/2ilcXUV

Effective Strategies for raising your cleaning prices – http://bit.ly/2nugbdM

5 Reasons to Raise Your Prices for Your Cleaning Service – http://bit.ly/2zMShMh

Why and How to Raise the Prices of Your Cleaning Customers – http://bit.ly/2ALrt35

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