We did a deal. Then a while later, the deal went so far South you would have seen penguins swimming in the frozen ocean.

Me: "I didn't feel right about it."
My partner: "Well why didn't you say anything?"
Me: "Well you didn't say anything!"
Him: “I didn’t say anything ‘cause you didn’t say anything!"

That's happened a couple of times to us and many times to our entrepreneur friends.

We knew we needed to develop an open communication culture.

Here’s how it works:

• Speak your mind with the other person’s best interests in mind.
• No snarky ramifications. Meaning, even if I don’t like what you’re saying, I’ll stop and listen to you because you’ve earned my trust.
• Check in with each other often. Post-meeting debriefs are the best.
• Ask, “How do you feel about this?"
• Then, be honest. “Everything looks great, but I’m feeling funky."

We’re learning to trust our guts, share openly, and avoid that funky feeling.

(photo via kevin thai)