- Startup Archive
- Posts
- Brian Chesky on how to build strong cofounder relationships
Brian Chesky on how to build strong cofounder relationships
“We [Airbnb cofounders] had a rule. The rule was that winning an argument was never more important than preserving the relationship. And the reason that's important is because if you start a company, you're going to have to debate a hundred thousand things... so no one argument can be the thing. There has to be this larger sense that we're a band.”
Chesky likens strong relationships to exercise.
“I think you gotta really work hard at the relationship, almost like exercising. If you don't keep exercising, you get out of shape. We worked really, really hard. And one of the things we did in 2009 is we said every single Sunday we're gonna meet, no matter how busy we get, and to this day, we still do those calls.”
Constant contact, connection, and respect are critical.
“I think a lot of human connection requires constant contact, constant connection, a deep sense of respect, a sense that I'm only here because of them, a sense of humility and gratitude, and a sense that I'm never going to try to win. Because if I win alone, I'm not going very far.”