"I'm the logician, you're the intuit," my business partner used to say. We truly were different in everything: how we made decisions, how fast we acted, how we treated people, even how we dressed.
In our otherness lay a massive spark. It shone brightest when we pitched prospects to a new face — an investor, a lender, or an entrepreneur,
Our blended views created a future in the listeners’ minds — a future they couldn’t refuse. And many didn’t. Sealed doors opened. Opportunities and money flowed in.
Sadly, one day that charismatic drive began to fade. Why?
The reason for the fall was the same as the reason for the rise — our difference. More precisely, the unreadiness to embrace the other's oddness. My partner valued everything logical, linear, systematic, and obvious. And he grew suspicious of things that were real, yet unseen.
More and more often, we argued and clashed when we discussed:
new trends just beginning to form,
innovative projects in the early stage,
catastrophic risks that could not yet be calculated.
faint signals of malicious intent from a counterparty,
unconventional solutions that promised exponential growth,
The main problem wasn’t my partner — it was me. Time and again, the logician trumped the intuit, because the latter did not trust his own gut. To "Where's the proof?" I couldn't snap: "It ain't time for that yet."
As a result, we fell into traps more often, and rare opportunities slipped away. My gut knew, but I couldn't prove it to him. Gripes and grudges snowballed.
Years after we parted ways, we met again for coffee. His questions showed he grasped his view's edge and hungered to see through my eyes.
Eventually, our run together proved gold for both. Not right away, but each of us learned his lesson. A world of paradoxes opened slightly to him. And I am learning how to rely on the Emptiness that gives birth to Everything.
Yours sincerely,
-Alexander
As a business therapist, I help tech founders quickly solve dilemmas at the intersection of business and personality, and boost company value as a result.
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