Get More TLC: #32: Clearing out

Although it is a book primarily about building a business, Rework (by Fried and Heinemeier Hansson,  the founders of 37 Signals), has some tips which are equally applicable to doing deals. On exit strategies:

• They say: Your priorities are out of whack if you’re thinking about getting out before you even dive in. Would you go into a relationship planning the breakup? Would you write the prenup on a first date? I say: contracts are about close business relationships. Check your contract content spends more time describing how you will work together and resolve issues, and less on how you can bring court proceedings or end the contract.
• They say: You need a commitment strategy, not an exit strategy. You should be thinking about how to make your project grow and succeed, not how you’re going to jump ship. I say: contracts should clearly state what the parties’ measures for success are so you both know how to make sure that project is meets its aims and objectives aka is a success. 
• They say: When you build a company with the intention of [selling out], you emphasize the wrong things. Instead of focusing on getting customers to love you, you worry about who’s going to buy you. I say: instead of focusing your terms on ensuring you ‘win’ at all costs, focus on trust, commitment, fairness, balance and equity. Think longer-term. 

On hiring:

• They say: If you are trying to… fill a position, hire the best writer… clear writing is a sign of clear thinking. Great writers know how to communicate. They make things easy to understand. They put themselves in someone else’s shoes. They know what to omit. I say: when it comes to writing deals, use your best writer. Their ease of communication will build trust, simplify the deal and show commitment to putting yourselves in the shoes of your client or supplier. (TL:DR well duh)