Alex Al-Sabah

I am big on turning negatives into positives. First a general conversation with the customer to understand their experience and what went wrong. Identifying the problem helps with two things: 1. Figuring out what can be done better in the future to avoid this from happening again. 2. Understanding fundamentally what made the customer “feel” like the experience wasn’t up to par. Once this is done, I try to offer a 100% replacement or money back guarantee AND then give them something extra. Many times this has turned an unhappy customer into an advocate. Advocates tell their friends, which increase customers.

The direction of a PE company might be different than your long-term intended purpose. There is a saying, “not all money is good money”. If you want your business to go a certain direction, be conscious of the direction the PE company might look to take the business. This is assuming they are buying in or acquiring a majority share.

PE exits can be great for business owners for a couple of reasons: 1. You’re typically selling for a multiple at a time where your business is on its way up or peaked. 2. The likely hood of your business going up and up and up in value is unlikely (look at businesses that started 20 years ago and see what percentage of them are still around. 3. Many times you can stay on and be compensated further by the acquiring PE firm with earn outs. This will allow you to figure out your next move while continuing to transition the company over fully.

If you don’t succeed at prioritizing yourself (physical health, mental health), then you won’t be able to prioritize others and your career. Working out physically has been a huge benefit for me and my journey, it provides two major benefits: 1. Surge of mental clarity and confidence 2. Physical strength and endurance for long days and nights Work/Life balance is also fundamental. Family is also a huge part of this. Take trips, make moments and memories that will give you true purpose. These breaks will disconnect you from the busy work and reflect on the bigger picture. When you return you will be recharged, re focused and prepared for the next hill you will be climbing.

Understanding your strengths and weaknesses is a critical part of success. Being self aware and knowing what you don’t know is actually a MAJOR strength. Use that to your benefit and find the best supporting cast who can really do those things better and faster. This creates more efficiency and eases the burden of time on entrepreneur(s).

It’s critical to remember your long term vision and stay committed to that vision. Entrepreneurs typically experience many losses/lessons before they experience a series of small wins. One way to approach this is to look at and manifest what the outcome is or will look like when you reach it. Once you have that picture, you work backwards by creating a PLAN on how to actually get there. This isn’t just any plan, but a series of milestones that are set and need to be achieved before you experience the end result. Lastly, it’s imperative that you prepare yourself for many many many (stress the “many”) things that won’t go your way before they actually do.