There are challenges in doing any type of collaborative research. In fact, the very "culture of higher education" is one where status comes from individual accomplishments rather than from group success. This high value placed on individual achievement often leads to fostering a work environment where competition is fierce. This leads to questions of intellectual ownership in collaboration, such as who will be listed as the first author, second author, and so on. After all, "A scholar's reputation depends upon what, where and how much he or she publishes." Other issues also must be considered that make the collaborative process a challenge. For example, different work habits among the authors or conflicts on how the piece should be written often occur. Still another obstacle is that colleagues are often just not interested in collaboration and prefer to work alone. Of course, there is also the issue of having time available to work and plan together. Certainly, all of these concerns, as well as other unforeseen obstacles, must be addressed before beginning the process of collaboration. But, when a possible collaboration project is faced with a distance of hundreds of miles, the challenges often become even greater. In this article, the authors discuss four components that lead to a successful collaboration among professors: (1) discussing ideas openly; (2) deciding projects specifically; (3) defining parameters clearly; and (4) demonstrating professional integrity.