Co-founder conflict therapy · San Francisco & telehealth
Your partnership is under strain. That doesn’t mean it’s over.
Therapy for co-founders navigating conflict, broken trust, communication breakdown, and the hard decisions that come with building together. $475 per one-hour session. Both of you join the first call.
Book a free 15-minute callWhy this matters
Co-founder conflict is one of the top reasons startups fail.
Founders pour everything into product, fundraising, and hiring. The relationship at the top gets neglected until there’s a crisis. The earlier you address it, the more options you have.
Is this you?
Signs the partnership is in trouble
Every conversation becomes a conflict
Co-founder conflict: topics that were manageable now feel loaded.
You’ve stopped talking about the hard stuff
A communication breakdown: hard conversations get avoided and decisions get delayed.
Your roles have blurred
Unclear roles and responsibilities: someone feels sidelined or overwhelmed.
You disagree on where the company is going
Strategic disagreement about the company’s future: raise or stay lean, sell or build for decades.
Trust has eroded
A breakdown in trust: you second-guess each other’s decisions and motives.
You’re not sure it can continue
Thinking about a co-founder split or exit: splitting up sounds easier than this.
The work
Not mediation. Therapy for a high-stakes partnership.
The goal isn’t to keep the peace. It’s to help you both think clearly and make decisions that are right for the company and for yourselves. Sessions are held together; sometimes individual sessions run alongside.
Free consultation
A 15-minute call, together, to see if this work fits.
First session together
We map the conflict and what each of you hopes to get out of this.
Ongoing sessions
Trust, communication, equity, roles, vision, at a pace that fits the urgency.
A clear path forward
Repair, restructure, or a clean decision to separate. You leave with clarity.
Why therapy
Mediator, coach, or therapist?
Mediator or attorney
Negotiates outcomes and formalizes agreements. Doesn’t address what’s driving the conflict.
Coach or advisor
Offers perspective, but not for the relational and psychological side.
Therapy
A confidential space to be honest about what’s happening and resolve the root cause, not just the surface dispute.
Many founders use all three: therapy for the underlying dynamic, then a mediator or attorney to formalize decisions. Starting with therapy often makes those later conversations go better.
What we work on
Common issues brought to these sessions
Equity and compensation disputes
When conversations about money become personal.
Role and ownership conflict
Who has final say on product, hiring, or fundraising.
Strategic disagreement
Same vision at the start; now every major decision is contested.
Communication breakdown
Conversations escalate or shut down. The pattern has become the problem.
Trust breakdown after a breach
A decision made without the other. The rupture needs addressing directly.
Founder exit or restructuring
How it happens matters for the company, the cap table, and both people.
Questions
What co-founders ask before starting
Does my co-founder have to be willing to come in?
Yes. If they aren’t, individual therapy can still help you process it and prepare for hard conversations.
What if we’re already considering splitting up?
That’s one of the most common reasons founders come in.
Is this confidential?
Yes. Nothing is shared with investors, boards, or anyone else without your explicit consent.
Can we do this remotely, from different places?
Yes, across California, Minnesota and New York.
Do you offer early-morning, evening or weekend sessions?
Yes. I offer early-morning, evening and weekend sessions, so therapy can fit around board meetings, launches and a founder’s schedule.