I'm so inspired as I write this, fresh out of a hosting a conversation with the fabulous Fiona Humberstone and Cecelina Tornberg that you'll be able to hear on the podcast tomorrow. We were talking about their latest collaboration, Art Directing Impactful Website Photography, an online course that I know will add immense value to anyone wanting to really leverage the power of their website.

Today, I want to rave a little about the power of conscious collaborations for your business. Collaborating with like minded and talented entrepreneurs is one of my greatest joys. Whenever I have done that in the past, it has energised and inspired me and added huge value to my clients and my business.

Done well, collaborations are a way to add depth, breadth, reach and energy to your business and open up a world of possibilities. They can also be tricky to get right, so I wanted to offer a few insights that will hopefully help you make the most of any opportunity you get to collaborate in your own business.

Let's take the example of Fiona and Cecelina. The course they have created helps entrepreneurs discover how to create elevated, evocative, immersive brand photography for their website and there is no better pair, in my view, to be offering this.

This is a really powerful collaboration that is a win-win for them and their client base and here's why.

Both entrepreneurs are able to sit firmly in their magic and do what they do best. In this online course Cecelina is able to bring her exquisite flair and skill in photography, her knowledge of how to create truly emotive and evocative imagery, weaving light, composition and storytelling in the way that only she can do. Fiona brings her insight and deep understanding of how to create truly resonant brands, how to create the right impact and connect content with visuals in her inimitable way. 

Here we see how their skill-set, experience and flair complement and don't compete, only adding to the overall value for their audience. This is so key. 

In collaboration you need to feel comfortable to show up in your brilliance, knowing that when you do, you support your co-collaborator and enable them to show up in theirs, the cumulative effect of which is gold for your audience.

They meet on core values so they are both pulling in the same direction. Both Fiona and Cecelina are passionate about delivering excellence. With the same drive to produce something truly exquisite and worthwhile and bring out the best in themselves and their clients. So there's no push back when one or other says a tweak is needed to elevate or refine what they are bringing. 

They are both committed to adding value and so create a shared energy of generosity, another core value for both of them. 

They both value aesthetics and creating something visually beautiful, and they share similar, although not identical tastes, so there's no infighting about the styling or production values. They share other values not least fairness, equity, passion, inspiration and joy at work which enable the partnership to flow from a foundation of common understanding.

They value each other and the relationship. Collaborations can potentially be fraught with tricky dynamics, particularly if the project is complex, time pressure is tight and the commercial stakes are high. Collaborating with someone you respect, have good rapport with, open, honest and kind communication enables you to navigate the ups and downs of a project with ease. Yes you have a task to do, but even if you deliver something incredible for your clients, if your relationship suffers as a result, it can cost you in the long run. A strong, compassionate and mutually beneficial collaboration will open the doors to future possibilities and only add ongoing value to both your businesses as a result.

There's a fair trade of skills and time. Clearly defining who does what in any partnership is key to success. Resentment can creep in if one or other feels like they are putting in more energy, time or resource.  That impacts on the overall energy of the project and how it's perceived by your audience. 

There are many things to balance on this score and different parties will bring different elements. 

There's no prescribed right way to strike a balance just that it's worth taking some time to think it through and agree the best way forwards in advance.

In this collaboration both Cece and Fiona have shared in the planning and prepping for the course, the three of us came together to work out exactly what was required to make sure each learner gets exactly what they need. Cecelina has done the lions share of the filming, photography and editing (no small feat) as that suits her skill set. Fiona brings her extensive and loyal audience and ion addition has taken in hand the commercials, marketing and back end production on her Brand Stylist Academy (again no small task). The financials are taken carefully into account, who invests what and who earns what. As fairness is a shared value for both these wonderful women, that part was a walk in the park for them. So there is a great balance of time, energy, skills and other resources.

It's fun!

No matter how potentially valuable commercially a collaboration is for your business, if doing it sucks the life blood from your bones and it's not a joy to do then, for me at least, the price is too high. The time spent collaborating is as important as the end result so choose people to work alongside that lights your fire, make it fun who you will enjoy celebrating with a glass of something lovely afterwards.