A founder gets an inbound.
A real one.
Strategic buyer. Serious interest. Not a tire kicker.
They grab coffee. It goes well. Really well.
Then the buyer asks:
โWhat are you looking to get for the business?โ
The founder pausesโฆ and answers.
Letโs say they say $10 million.
The buyer nods.
A few weeks later, a deal shows up at $20 million.
Sounds like a win, right?
Itโs not.
Because the only number that matters is the one you never got to.
Companies Are Bought, Not Sold
Most founders think exits are driven by readiness.
Revenue. EBITDA. Growth.
But deals donโt start there.
They start with interest.
And that interest often shows up as something deceptively casual:
An email.
A DM.
A โweโve been watching youโ message.
In M&A, thereโs a name for this:
UFOs โ Unsolicited Offers.
And theyโre dangerous.
Because they feel like validation.
But theyโre actually a test.
What a UFO Can Cost You
Hereโs the trap:
A single buyer shows up.
You engage.
You answer questions.
You start building momentum.
But without realizing it, youโve already lost leverage.
Why?
Because you skipped the one thing that creates value in M&A:
Competition.
When thereโs only one buyer:
- Thereโs no price discovery
- Thereโs no pressure
- Thereโs no urgency
And the moment you give them your number?
Youโve anchored the entire conversationโฆ against yourself.
The $10 Million Mistake
Going back to that founder:
They thought they won.
They doubled their expectation.
But what they didnโt see:
- There was no process
- No competitive tension
- No indication of what other buyers would pay
That $20M deal?
It might have been $30M.
Or $50M.
Or structured in a way that changed their life completely.
Theyโll never know.
Because they answered too early.
Never Tell a Buyer Your Number
This is one of the most expensive mistakes in M&A.
Founders think theyโre being transparent.
Buyers see it as data.
And they use that data to:
- Anchor negotiations
- Frame value discussions
- Control the narrative
The right answer to โWhatโs your number?โ is simple:
โWeโre focused on finding the right partner and running a process to determine fair market value.โ
Thatโs it.
No number. No range. No hint.
Because the moment you speak firstโฆ
You lose.
The UFO Framework: How to Handle It the Right Way
Unsolicited offers arenโt bad.
Theyโre signals.
But they need to be handled correctly.
Hereโs the shift:
1. Slow It Down
Urgency benefits the buyer, not you.
2. Donโt Anchor
No numbers. No expectations. No shortcuts.
3. Create Optionality
Even if you like the buyerโespecially if you like the buyerโintroduce competition.
4. Run a Process
Deals get better when theyโre structured, not reactive.
The goal isnโt to reject the UFO.
Itโs to convert it into a process.
Why James Can Count Solo Founder Successes on One Hand
Thereโs another uncomfortable truth here:
Most successful exits donโt happen alone.
The myth of the solo founder is just thatโa myth.
Because buildingโand exitingโa company requires:
- Emotional resilience
- Strategic perspective
- Operational discipline
And one person rarely brings all three at scale.
Co-founders arenโt a bonus.
Theyโre leverage.
They challenge decisions.
They absorb pressure.
They prevent blind spotsโespecially in moments like a UFO.
The Only Thing Worse Than Not Raising Enough
Founders worry about running out of money.
They should.
But thereโs a quieter risk:
Raising too much.
Too much capital:
- Masks inefficiencies
- Kills discipline
- Encourages bad decisions
The best companies donโt just raise capital.
They respect it.
Because disciplineโnot dollarsโis what makes a business valuable in the eyes of a buyer.
The Focus Principle: Great Founders Get Narrower
As companies grow, the temptation is to expand.
More products.
More markets.
More bets.
But great founders do the opposite.
They narrow.
They double down on:
- What works
- What scales
- What buyers understand
Because complexity kills clarity.
And clarity drives valuation.
This Is Still a Human Game
For all the talk of multiples, metrics, and modelsโฆ
M&A is still human.
Itโs trust.
Itโs perception.
Itโs psychology.
The best dealmakers donโt just understand finance.
They understand people.
Why someone hesitates.
Why someone leans in.
Why someone walks away.
Thatโs why, in a deal room, a background in human behavior often matters more than an MBA.
Because deals donโt close on spreadsheets.
They close on conviction.
Final Thought
Most founders donโt lose value in the deal.
They lose it before the deal ever starts.
In a coffee meeting.
In a casual answer.
In a number they shouldโve never said.
UFOs feel like opportunity.
But without structure, theyโre expensive.
Watch the entire episode here
Be Ready Before the Buyer Shows Up
The difference between a good outcome and a great one?
Preparation.
With ShareVault, you can:
- Run a structured, competitive process
- Control how buyers access information
- Eliminate friction during diligence
- Protect leverage when it matters most
Because in M&Aโฆ
You donโt get paid for interest.
You get paid for process.
Thinking about sellingโor already getting inbound interest?
Make sure youโre ready before you respond โ [
