Just received our company’s annual medical benefits renewal this year and was shocked to hear it’s going down by 3%. I assumed that they always increase. Nice way to finish the week!

Why do a search fund? Because you can control your own destiny. Yes, you are responsible for everything your SMB does (or fails to do) but that also means you can also control your own lifestyle and financial destiny. That’s what convinced me to make the jump.

Important to remember that traditional search fund investments follow a power law distribution of returns. 50% of investments are a loss and another 16% only return 1-2x invested capital! So investors don’t have to pick all the right searchers, just enough of of them.

Prediction: in next 5 years the search fund mafia (ie Pacific Lake, Anacapa) be disrupted by recent EtA operators with $ to invest. Why take funding from PE-like investors (with no or dated CEO experience) when you can get more exposure to one who recently left the trenches?

Another interesting fact about traditional search funds is that the industry return profile (ex outliers) has improved over the last 10+ years! It’s surprising bc capital typically floods into areas that show outsized returns, thereby pushing down returns.

Can any active YPO members please share their thoughts on their experience? I’m looking for a CEO circle / networking group and it seems to be the highest profile one.

If you are an Eagle Scout please RT this (For science)

Sentiment check: in the last month we’ve had two employees (general laborers) quit bc they “can make more trading on Robinhood” than working. Each earned over $60k with us last year.

LMM sentiment update from my foxhole: - hiring “feels” easier than last year, despite falling UE rate - more demand than we know what to do with - input prices continue to rise, but less frequently than last year - customers are pushing out payments, but eventually paying (⬆️ AR)

Gonna give this Twitter thing a little more effort. Quick bio: did a mid-career search in 2017 and acquired a Midwest b2b services co in ‘18. Have since done a couple add-ons, and have benefited from a great team and secular tailwinds. Happy to help if I can. DMs are open!

From the recent Stanford GSB survey it seems like a majority of the recent traditional search fund acquisitions are SaaS / tech / healthcare cos. Are investors pushing searchers in that direction, or is based on the availability of opportunities (or something else)?

How to live a stress-free life as an SMB operator: 1. Implement EOS 2. Create a goals-oriented culture 3. Have a loving family to support you 4. Exercise daily and sleep 7+ hours per night 5. Hire a GM and retire to a low-tax state 6. Consume alcohol only in moderation

A wise boss once said: “It’s okay to bitch up or sideways, but never down.” If you’re a CEO and you’re laying your problems on employees, please stop. And your spouse doesn’t want hear about it either so it’s better to find a group of like-minded CEOs to meet with regularly.