When I first started working with the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do, I thought I had it figured out. I was dead wrong.
Don't wait until you get an offer to prepare for an exit. I'm sharing my 15-point checklist of everything you need to have in order—from your finances to your IP—to ensure a smooth and successful M&A process.
Why Most Approaches Fail
Let me be direct: about 70% of the approaches I see to the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do are fundamentally flawed. Not slightly off. Fundamentally flawed.
The root cause is usually one of three things:
- Copying what big companies do without understanding why they do it. What works for Google doesn't work for a 10-person startup.
- Over-engineering the solution when a simple approach would work better. I've seen teams spend six months building something that could have been done in two weeks.
- Ignoring the human element. Technology is the easy part. Getting people to actually use it is where the real challenge lives.
The Counterintuitive Truth
Here's what surprised me most about the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do: the best practitioners do less, not more.
When I was building MovieLaLa, we tried to do everything at once. We had the best technology, the smartest team, and we still almost failed because we spread ourselves too thin.
The lesson I took from that experience, and from watching hundreds of other companies, is that the data tells a different story than your gut. It sounds simple. It's incredibly hard to execute.
The Framework That Actually Works
I'm going to share the exact framework I use when evaluating the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do. It's not complicated, but it requires discipline.
Step 1: timing is everything in this game This is where most people go wrong. They skip this step entirely and jump straight to execution. Don't do that.
Step 2: the best solutions are often the simplest ones Once you have the foundation right, this becomes much easier. I've watched founders struggle with this for months when the answer was staring them in the face.
Step 3: Iterate relentlessly Nothing works perfectly the first time. The companies in my portfolio that nail the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do are the ones that treat it as an ongoing process, not a one-time project.
Real Talk: What Actually Matters
I'm going to cut through the noise and tell you what actually matters when it comes to the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do.
First, execution speed beats perfection. Every time. I've never seen a company fail because they moved too fast on the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do. I've seen plenty fail because they moved too slow.
Second, measure everything. If you can't measure it, you can't improve it. Set up tracking from day one, even if it's basic.
Third, talk to your users. This sounds obvious but you'd be amazed how many founders build their the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do strategy in a vacuum. Get out of the building. Talk to real people.
This connects to broader themes around AI pitch decks, AI exit strategies, AI competitive moats, AI due diligence that I've been thinking about a lot lately.
What's Next
The world of the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do is moving fast. What worked last year might not work next year. That's both the challenge and the opportunity.
My advice: stay curious, stay humble, and stay close to the people who are actually doing the work. Read less thought leadership and do more experiments. Talk to fewer consultants and more practitioners.
And if you're a founder building in this space, remember that the best time to get the pre-exit checklist: 15 things you must do right is before you need to. Don't wait for a crisis to force your hand.
I'll keep sharing what I learn. This stuff matters too much to keep to myself.
Frequently Asked Questions
How has this view evolved over time?
My thinking on most topics has changed significantly over the years. Early in my career, I held many conventional views that experience proved wrong. I try to update my beliefs when the evidence changes.
What experience informs this perspective?
This perspective comes from over a decade of building companies in Silicon Valley, two successful exits (RemoteTeam to Gusto, MovieLaLa to Gfycat), and investing in 200+ startups including Anthropic, OpenAI, and Scale AI. I write about what I've lived.
Do all experts agree with this view?
No, and that's fine. The best ideas in business are often contrarian. I share my perspective based on my experience and data, but I encourage you to seek out opposing viewpoints and form your own conclusions.
What's the most common pushback you get on this?
People often push back by citing exceptions or edge cases. And they're usually right that exceptions exist. But building a strategy around exceptions rather than patterns is a losing game for most founders.