Set hard limits
Your partner-in-crime may always have your back, as you have his/hers, but the both of you have to be very clear about what you would never ask/expect the other to do for you. Set hard limits based on what you’re comfortable/not comfortable with. Never, ever involve him/her in something that might reflect badly on them; never let him/her be the fall guy for a bad decision you made in your own capacity. Do not involve him/her in a situation where they will end up feeling guilty when things don’t work out according to plan. And don’t ever take your partner-in-crime for granted, and make it seem like you take their support as a matter of course, rather than as a privilege that has been extended to you, because you hold such an important place in his/her life. And ensure that you always return the favour.
Don’t stray from POA
If you’ve jointly discussed that you will be responding to a certain situation in a particular way – don’t take an impulsive call to change course, without consulting the other. If you’ve asked your partner-in-crime to cover up the fact from your current partner that you met with an ex the night before, when the both of you were supposed to be having a girls’/guys’ night out, don’t take the moral high ground and confess – without telling him/her about it. You’ve already put him/her in a tight spot by making them conceal the truth and back up your story. By switching to the truth yourself, you make your partner-in-crime look like a liar, as though he/she is the untrustworthy one. If he/she also shares a good relationship with whoever they lied to for you, you’re effectively ending the trust and comfort of their relationship as well. It’s simple: No matter what the reason, don’t stray from what you’ve chalked out – unless you’ve explicitly had a later conversation and decided otherwise. Attacks of conscience, believing that you can change the consequences – none of these should move you until you’ve sorted it out with your partner-in-crime. As the old adage goes: United you stand – divided, you fall hard.
Communicate
Goof-ups happen or the “perfect crimes” are uncovered when the principal parties involved in it leave room for miscommunication. Most cover-ups don’t end with the cover-up. The situation itself can go on, and is dynamic, with things changing all the time. You and your partner-in-crime need to keep in touch with each other. Set up a code that the two of you are familiar with, but won’t be too revealing to a third person: Maybe you could message a phrase that means the situation is under control, or you could have a sign to indicate that the cover-up hasn’t worked, and that you need to move to your Plan B immediately. Don’t let there be a silence that your partner-in-crime has to interpret or worry about or plan alternative scenarios around.
No outsiders
The secrecy of a piece of information is directly proportional to the number of people who know it. It’s a simple equation, but again, one people don’t take seriously. If you can keep it to yourself, that’s best, but if you must involve your partner-in-crime then make sure that neither you, nor he/she is breathing a word of it to another person. Discussing how you covered up for each other with a third person makes it that much more possible that that the third person will (unintentionally or not) blab about it to another person. Fewer the conspirators, the greater the chances of successfully carrying it out. You and your partner-in-crime may be invested in ensuring that your plan is a success, a third or fourth person may not, and may throw the both of you off your rehearsed stride as well.
