Believe it or not, but there are still plenty of us out there who will do business on a handshake. Your word is the contract and heaven help you if you renege on a deal as it is then very personal.
Tomorrow evening I am going out to dinner with one of my best friends who I have known for 35 years, but have only been friends for 21 years. He was in the army in another platoon and stood out mainly because of his height and skinny frame. There are some people you cannot forget and he was one of them and I say that in a nice way.
I bumped into him back in 2004 when I returned from England when I was seeking assistance with courier deliveries. It was a chance meeting which was different as we both recognized each other and had a common bond. Weird how things work out and we made a promise to each other that we would look out for each other by a hand shake. I was wheeling and dealing back then and was involved in many things still trying to find out what I was good at. I had the ideas, but somehow could never see them through and needed help to get them off the ground.
He has always struggled in business and thankfully is doing well for himself now after dozens of businesses that were not bad ideas. His ideas were sound, but were ahead of the time as the online sector was not ready for what he was trying to do back in 2007/8. He has always been early and partnered with the wrong people who somehow always screwed him over.
One of the deals I was involved with did rather well and I dropped a large sum of money in cash on his desk fulfilling my side of the agreement. This blew him away as who does that kind of thing in this day and age, but a hand shake is a personal agreement and why it is so powerful. He has never forgotten that moment and is now in the process of making sure my new business succeeds by helping wherever he can. The trust between us is second to none and we have always looked out for each other and will drop everything if help is required.
His latest business which is slowly doing well is a pick and pack business which is similar to what we have just taken over from the 1st January. Tomorrow evening is more about a meet up and a catch up which he instigated, but it also involves far more where he is going to walk us through and be of assistance wherever he can. His vast contacts for the cheapest and best delivery solutions which we have already started to use is just the beginning. He has software programs which he is willing to share and these are only going to help the business succeed even more. He is still trying to pay me back and I know that even though he has lived up to our agreement on numerous occasions when I have asked for help.
It is funny how things turn out and how somebody you never knew can turn out to be your must trusted confident in life. A handshake can reveal so much about a person and I am old school so it is more than just a hand shake and see it more as a personal guarantee. Everyone I know who has hand shake agreements has done well like my mentor once said what is the point of signing a partnership deal when you have a percentage of nothing and those agreements can only be signed when value is accrued. Today he is a billionaire and only does business with those who accept hand shake deals. He is the kind of guy you would never cross and his word is his word which is unheard of in business today. I would hate to know what would happen if you double crossed people like that as it would not end well.