Choosing partners is the most undervalued decision

How do you choose who you do business with?

On Monday I ran 6 km with 20 founders at Run Your Business, an event created by Borja Vega from Startup Grind Madrid, Luis Blanco from Volta Run Club, and Ricardo de Tomás from Driza. Three brands that combined the best of each into a single format: running together and networking at 9 Lives.

What caught my attention wasn't just the format but what the format filters for.

To show up and run 6 km on a Monday at 7 PM, you need a certain commitment. You need to take off the blazer and show up in sneakers ready to sweat. That already tells you something about who appears and shows themselves outside their professional "look."

During the run I talked with Stephen Campbell, a fractional COO and coincidentally my neighbor. We discussed something that seems obvious until you live it: being aligned in values with your partners and vendors matters when things are going well. But it matters even more when things aren't going well and you need to make hard decisions.

And right there I remembered something I've been thinking about for a while. The best businesses don't come from events where everyone is selling themselves. They come from spaces where you meet people who have a similar lifestyle. Where there's already a filter before the business conversation starts.

In this case, running is that filter. It requires consistency, it requires building fitness little by little, and it requires thinking long-term. Just like when you build a functional, profitable business.

A business isn't a sprint. It's more like a marathon. And the best relationships follow the same path.

Are you choosing the right people to work with?

I want to find more events like this where you get to know people before talking business. What other things could be done around Madrid?