You'll have a lot better luck finding people if you talk a little bit about yourself and what you're up to. Keeping your idea secret is less valuable than you think, while the value of finding a good cofounder is beyond measure. Good luck!
Regarding finding a "co-founder"... could you please elaborate on what that means? That is, I'm someone who might be interested in getting together with someone with complementary skills. Do I have my own lawyer put together some kind of founder's agreement? Or do you use the other party's lawer -- who's forming the legal paperwork for the business entity -- and have them add you in somehow (eg., as an LLC member)?
I know one successful fellow who used no paperwork or contract at all and everything worked out well (so far), but the "real founder" (who's name was on everything) could've easily taken him to the cleaners.
A co-founder is someone who starts a company with you and owns a portion of the company similar in size to your portion. The exact details of how you work it out, how you structure the company and how you involve lawyers are up to you.
Generally, I think you should avoid founding companies with people you think are going to rip you off. That's not to say that you shouldn't have proper paperwork.
I've got a friend who wants to start up a website. He's already got the domain, the idea, and needs admin and webdev help. But there's no business entity yet. He wants to include me, and have me share in the fruits of our labor, but sees no reason to put anything on paper. I'm guessing once an LLC is formed, only his name will be on it.
I trust my friend. But I've also seen money do strange things to people, and was wondering what the options are.
You'll have a lot better luck finding people if you talk a little bit about yourself and what you're up to. Keeping your idea secret is less valuable than you think, while the value of finding a good cofounder is beyond measure. Good luck!