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I have been living in MN for the last 4 years. I am not from the US. I give this background to show that my close friends are not from here, so I cannot approach them to be my co-founders. I have close friends from MN, but none of them are interested in working in a startup and none of them have the technical background needed for my startup. I want to start a company which includes building websites and mobile apps.

I do not know how to go about finding someone whom I can trust. I know I can go through startuply.com, linkedin.com, etc., but how do I know that I can trust them?

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3 Answers

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Start alone. Someone will join you in case of visible success on a horizon.

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Agree. Entrepreneurs trying to recruit other entrepreneurs rarely works. Start alone and build your offering ( e.g. client portfolio, differentiated web app) and use that to sell the potential of the business. Potential co-founders, principles and sweat equity employees all need to see something that proves your capabilities and clarity of the opportunity. – Cameron McGrane Jan 2 '10 at 5:18
Totally agree: single-founder startups are way underrated. Start alone, more people will come. – frenchie Jun 10 '12 at 22:43
up vote 2 down vote

Networking!

I'd recommmend:

  • Get involved with the local tech community
  • Attend conferences and workshops
  • Attend or start a StartupDrinks event
  • Start a blog, start following people on twitter, comment on other local blogs

How do you know you can trust them?

  • You could get to know them before starting a company with them
  • How do they know they could trust you? If you're both coming from a similar financial position then you might both be in the same boat and have to trust each other
  • Use LinkedIn or networking to find someone you know in common, or find someone you could trust who might recommend/refer someone
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You can never trust anyone. Why do you need a cofounder? If you have the money, start hiring. If you dont, earn the money first.

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