The Leadership Voice

**For founders, C-suite executives, and board members. Anyone who shaped the deal decision and then had to carry the organization through what came next.*

You're at coffee with another founder, executive, or board member who's been through their own deal. They ask how it really went for you. Not the official version. What do you tell them?

You can type, or if your device has speech-to-text, you can use it like you’re speaking to them. A few sentences are enough. More if it’s there.

A few sentences are enough. More if it’s there.

The story is mostly something...

I lived through directly
something I watched happen up close
something I heard from others

*Your experience was influenced by...

Drag and drop, or select from the dropdown menu, to rank from highest to lowest influence.

the people and relationships involved
the plan or structure
uncertainty

The next few questions ask you to position your experience between two statements. Drag the marker to wherever it sits for you. The middle is a real position, not a shortcut.

*Energy

I was running on empty

Both equally

I was running on adrenaline

Not applicable

*Plan

I held the plan and stopped hearing what people were telling me

Both equally

I kept adapting and stopped being someone people could follow

Not applicable

*Deciding

What weighed on me most was how much I didn’t know

Both equally

What weighed on me most was what each choice would cost

Not applicable

On which side of the deal was this?

Acquirer
Target / Seller
Merger of Equals

What type of deal was this?

Strategic Acquisition
PE Buyout
Add-on or Bolt-on
Merger of Equals
Carve-Out / Divestiture
Take-Private

Minority or Growth Investment
Management Buyout
Recapitalization
Distressed Sale
Other

At what stage did the experience occur?

Pre-LOI
Diligence and Negotiation
Close to 90 days
4–12 months
Year 1+

The Unsaid

Is there anything you wanted to say but could not? Anything the story above does not capture? This space is yours.