I worked with a company where there were 2 founders and one of them told the other guy he would like to retire so he got bought out.
He was still working for the company while the other guy went on vacation.
2 weeks later he came back, not a single one of all the orders was finished and he had introduced his new company to all customers.
In the months leading up to all this, the "evil" partner had bought an exact copy of all the machinery and software.
It was illegal what that guy had done and he was at risk of doing some time in jail.
They eventually settled for a price that was way too low because the victim was tired of it, he couldn't stop thinking about it, he couldn't sleep, he wanted it to stop.
Here's the kicker. The evil partner had done it 2 times before and his latest victim knew about it when they founded the company, but figured it wouldn't happen again because the evil guy was close to retirement.
The lesson to be learned is that the biggest predictor of what someone will do is what they have done.
This doesn't only apply when dealing with others, but also with yourself. I've gotten quite good at recognizing when I'm bullshitting myself about something that I will do, and often now find myself saying, "Yeah Oz, but that's what you said last time. What's different this time?" When I don't have a good answer, I know I need to take a different approach.
Sebastian Marshall (HN:lionhearted) said it best. "Track records don't lie."
In the months leading up to all this, the "evil" partner had bought an exact copy of all the machinery and software.
It was illegal what that guy had done and he was at risk of doing some time in jail. They eventually settled for a price that was way too low because the victim was tired of it, he couldn't stop thinking about it, he couldn't sleep, he wanted it to stop.
Here's the kicker. The evil partner had done it 2 times before and his latest victim knew about it when they founded the company, but figured it wouldn't happen again because the evil guy was close to retirement.
Lesson learned ? I don't know. Trust your gut ?