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Do owners usually overestimate or underestimate the value of their business? And there's two camps on this one, so it's a both and, which I think most of my answers are. It depends on if it has value versus if it has uh what would be determined as no value. So category number one is when a business is cash flowing, six figures or more, the business owners usually, I would say probably 80% of the time over inflate the value of their business. They use different metrics. It really is across the board. So what multiples they're using are going to go for the absolute highest, and what number they're using is usually the wrong number they're using. So um, and then uh adding in things like you know, the equipment, furniture, fixtures that varies based on the size of the business and what is actually seen as profit versus what is seen as being covered by the expenses of operating the business. So there's some baggage that we have to uncover there when I'm typically talking to customers or clients and they they overinflate the value of their business just based on the wrong metrics or the wrong multiples. And uh, you know, there's an emotional component to that as well. So uh sometimes it's it's justified, you know, depending on how much they're working, but um in the business and a couple other variables. Most of the time, though, it's an overinflated view of the business. Now, there's the other side of things which is an underestimated value of the business, and that's typically businesses that either is really overly dependent on the owner, they haven't brought on a lot of staff, and to them they see it as having absolutely no value. I cannot tell you how often I talk to business owners who will respond to maybe a message or a phone call we left that we have prospective buyers, and they will reluctantly say something like, This business isn't worth anything, and I have to open up a dialogue with them because there's again, we've talked about this in other podcasts. There are prospective competitors or venture capital money that is looking for roll-up businesses, and so you don't necessarily have to have a lot. Now, these are the I guess in terms of investment scalability, uh, at face value seem the most unattractive, but they can be lucrative. So if we do have interested buyers that have already looked at this as a prospective opportunity, there's a reason they're doing that. So, again, let's say you're a solo owner and you're generating, you know, again, six figures or more, or close to it, but it's you and maybe another part-time person, or you and one other employee, or you and your spouse. For the most part, we don't deal with those unless we have a buyer who says, Hey, I can buy that company based on the channels that they're they have, or the exposure that they have online, or whatever the reason is, or their geographical location. And we already have an operations team in place that can run their existing lead flow, and we're gonna reduce actually the overhead because we don't need both of those people. And so those are times and situations in which what uh owner would see as a business having zero value or very little value, maybe the book of business, actually has some multiple valuation components in it that would not be traditionally built into it. And that there are other businesses where the owner is aware of the value and wants a multiple that's higher than market cap, and there's justification for it. They know the competitive edge that they have. So there are there are times where I'll I'll communicate with somebody and they'll say, Hey, I want 4x the value of this business, and they know there's an emotional component based on the market share that they have, that hey, whoever gets this is going to be able to take it to another level almost immediately. So by and large, I'm I'm trying to walk business owners through a proper valuation formula based on market research and current multiple aspects that are the market's pay, and we'll typically have to reduce what they think the value is. And as we have those conversations, it becomes very evident. They they can see it clearly outlined, they understand, and then they'll agree upon that asking price. Now, there are times where an owner has such uh I would gu I would say uh living situations or life circumstances that does not afford them the luxury of selling at the multiples the market happens to be buying those businesses for, but they still want to sell. But they have a certain rate that they have to sell for. We'll come in with very realistic expectations that we can ask for this much, but there's gonna be some components that you're going to have to give and take on. First of all, obviously there's gonna be negotiations on the asking price. The first question I'm gonna get is how do we come up with that multiple? And we'll give them the real situation, and they'll have to work through the prospective opportunities for them. And from there, we'll also have to tantalize the prospective buyers with some leveraged owner finance with better rates than they would get from the bank. And so those are the two circumstances that I run into the most. Uh, very rarely will an owner say, hey, this is my realistic expectation, and it happens to be right on market value. So if you're thinking about selling and you've got an idea of what the value is, you need to just take a step back and go to a broker who has uh some exposure to what the current multiple asking price is based on your circumstances, and let them give you the realistic expectations. Then you can kind of work out the details from there. There are ways around getting higher multiples than what the market is going for, based on what I just said. And then for the rare occasions where it's underestimated, which are typically smaller companies that on the surface have very little value, they're surprised to find out, obviously. Whoa, whoa, whoa, before you close the doors, there's nothing more I wouldn't say for me, it's not frustrating, it's it's unfortunate when I talk to an owner. This just happened with one of my kiddos uh last year. They were on a uh a softball team, and I was talking to one of the parents. Me and him have had conversations about a company he owned, and he, you know, when the conversation came up, he said, Yeah, last year I just closed the doors on two locations. We just weren't making it. I knew it didn't have any value, let go of his, I think it was four employees, and it was just one of those points where it was, you know, I I was I dug in a little bit to see is there anything that we can rescue from this? And there wasn't, because enough time had lapsed that all the online assets and anything like that had already turned the tide. So make sure if you are convinced that your business has no value, it may not. That's the reality of it. It may not, but it's always good to just check an experienced broker in your area or online, or obviously go to the vantagebrokers.com or reach out to me personally and let us just look it over and give you another opinion. It doesn't mean you have to work with us, there's no obligation. But before you close the doors, I've had this actually happen more times than I'd like to have happen. Before you close the doors, see if there's any value. A lot of times you could be turning away a significant um paycheck that you wouldn't have had otherwise. So that's my thought on the overestimation of the value of the business versus underestimation value of the business. I hope that helps. Pause before you make any decision, get an expert opinion, and then you can make an informed decision. That should go universally across any big decision in life, but especially something like your business that you've worked hard for. Even if it didn't get to the numbers that you had hoped or things weren't looking the way that you had hoped they had looked, and you're ready to take on another chapter of life, before you just walk away, get another opinion and see what might be there. I hope that helps, and we'll chat again soon.