Valuation Methodology
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M1 VALUATIONS RESOURCES Exit Planning
5 Mistakes That Could Cost You Millions on Your Exit
The most expensive moment of your life can turn on a few avoidable mistakes, and most are quiet until a buyer's team finds them. Here are the five that show up most often, and what they cost. More
Exit Planning
The 18-Month Runway Before an Exit
Most owners start preparing for a sale six months too late. Here's what the eighteen-month window actually buys you, and what it costs to skip it. More
Exit Planning
The 10 Things to Do to Multiply Your Exit's Value
Value is not luck, it's the result of a handful of things you can control. Ten moves to multiply your exit's value, ordered from biggest payoff to smallest, so you know where to start. More
SBA & Deal Structure
What SBA Buyers Actually Need from Your Financials
A clean SBA 7(a) loan needs more than profitable financials. Here is what the underwriter is reading, and what gets a deal killed in the last week. More
Valuation Methodology
What Is a Business Valuation, Explained Like You're Five
How much should someone pay for your business? Answered with real evidence, that's a valuation. A plain-English walk through the three approaches and why a defensible number beats a guess. More
Owner Operations
The Real Cost of Owner Dependency
Every owner knows they should work less in the business. Few realize how much that decision is worth in dollars when it is time to sell. More
SBA & Deal Structure
7 Signs a Buyer Is About to Lowball You
Buyers who do this for a living have a playbook; you're doing it once. Seven signals that a low offer is coming, so you can see it before it lands and hold your price. More
Owner Operations
Recurring Revenue: Why It Multiplies Your Value
Two businesses, same profit. One sells for twice as much. The difference is usually recurring revenue, the single feature that changes the multiple a buyer applies to everything you've built. More
Valuation Methodology
The One Number Every Owner Should Know (and Most Don't)
You can learn what your house is worth in sixty seconds. Ask what your business is worth, the asset that funds your life, and most owners go blank. Here's why that gap matters, and how to close it. More
Owner Operations
Founder Dependency: The Silent Discount on Your Price
The more essential you are to the business, the less it's worth to a buyer. The founder dependency discount is one of the largest and most common, here's how to spot it and shrink it. More
SBA & Deal Structure
Why the First Offer Is Almost Never the Real Number
A buyer's first offer sounds like a fact. It's an opening move, set in their favor. Why anchoring makes it almost never the real number, and what lets you respond instead of react. More
Valuation Methodology
3 Approaches to Valuation, in Plain English
Valuation isn't a black box. There are three ways to answer 'what is this worth', income, market, and asset, and a good valuation uses more than one to cross-check itself. Here they are, simply. More
Exit Planning
8 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Sell
Selling a business is many decisions, not one. The owners who do it well answer the hard questions before a buyer shows up. Eight worth sitting with, starting with what it's really worth. More
Owner Operations
Customer Concentration: When One Client Becomes a Risk
A big customer feels great, steady revenue, strong relationship. A buyer sees a single point of failure. Why customer concentration becomes a discount, and how to reduce it before you sell. More
Valuation Methodology
EBITDA Multiples: What They Are and Why Yours Matters
'What multiple will I get?' It sounds technical, but the idea is simple, and it controls much of your price. What EBITDA multiples are, and why raising yours reprices everything you already earn. More
Owner Operations
The 6 Levers That Move Enterprise Value (Pick Two)
You can't fix everything before you sell, and you don't need to. Value moves on six levers. The trick is knowing which two matter most for your business, and pulling those hard. More
Exit Planning
Exit Readiness: A Simple Checklist for the Next 24 Months
The best exits aren't rushed; they're prepared. Most of the work that lifts your price takes 12 to 24 months. A plain checklist to run, in order, so you're ready when the moment comes. More
Valuation Methodology
Why "Defensible" Is the Most Important Word in a Valuation
Any number can be written on a page. The real question: can it survive someone trying to tear it apart? Why 'defensible' is the difference between a figure that helps you and one that embarrasses you. More
Owner Operations
5 Reasons Buyers Pay More for Some Businesses Than Others
Two businesses, same size, same profit. One sells for far more. It's not luck, it's risk. Buyers pay more when there's less to fear. The five reasons that gap appears, and why each is in your control. More
Exit Planning
The Cost of Waiting: Why Timing Quietly Decides Your Price
Most owners think the sale is the big moment. It's not. The big moment is the eighteen months before it, when value is built or lost. Why timing quietly decides your price, and how to control it. More
Valuation Methodology
Certified, Strategic, or Quick: Which Valuation Do You Actually Need?
Not every situation needs the same depth of valuation. Buy the wrong level and you waste money; buy too little and you're exposed. How to match certified, strategic, or quick to the moment you're in. More
SBA & Deal Structure
How to Talk About Your Number Without Losing Leverage
Knowing your number is half the battle. The other half is how you carry it into the room. How to hold your ground without bluffing, let the math talk, don't over-explain, anchor first, and pause. More
Valuation Methodology
Your Business Is Probably Your Biggest Asset. Do You Know Its Number?
Most of your net worth isn't in your bank account, it's locked inside your business. Owners can recite their home and investment values, then go blank on the asset that dwarfs them all. More