(Comic) Who can you trust?

I promise, I promise. I’ll refer you to my whole network, and bring you tons of business. 

If you haven’t already, you’re going to meet tons of “flakes” in your startup career.
There are different breeds of flakes. Keep your eye out for all of the following species:

1. The Well Wisher – This person always tells you about the contacts he/she will tell about your business, but never actually does it.
2. The Guarantor – This person promises to be a fantastic partner or vendor, but unfortunately the “timing” is never right.
3. The Genie – This person will take all your woes and wishes them away with a swift magic wand. Alas, he/she never comes through.
4. The Yin to your Yang – This person seems like the perfect complement, a cofounder made in heaven. But of course, this never quite materializes.

You need to be very careful when dealing with flakes while running your business. In fact, you may even find reliable contacts end up not living up to promises in the business world.  It is your responsibility in business to make sure that you don’t waste your time on unreliable people

Also, if you are constantly being strung along, the message is loud and clear.  You need to craft the right value, the right motivation and the right incentive, to the person you are trying to reach out to. Its the only way to get the attention and the leverage your need from that person.  Focus your energy on identifying the right people that you can work with in every situation.

A sneaky trick that can often work, is to grant the “flaker” a favor, only if he/she stays true to what he/she promised you.

Let us know what flakes you have dealt with in the comments below.