Seller personalities in action

Connectivity map for the four personality patterns

• 4.3 Concept: The four personality patterns The core concept in seller personalities
• The Emotional First-Timer: The Emotional First-Timer Selling a business for the first time. Deeply attached to what they built. Takes business critiques as personal attacks. Needs time to process decisions that others make quickly. (What to do: validate their accomplishments explicitly before)
• The Sophisticated Repeat Seller: The Sophisticated Repeat Seller Has sold a business before, possibly multiple times. Knows how M&A works. May be testing you to see if you know what you are doing. Brings experienced advisors and expects a professional process. (What to do: be direct and data-driven. Move fast through sta)
• The Burned Seller: The Burned Seller Had a prior deal fall apart, often late in the process, and is now hypersensitive to anything that might indicate the same thing is happening again. More likely to interpret normal diligence as bad faith. (What to do: over-communicate. Hit every deadline. Never retr)
• The Exhausted Burnout: The Exhausted Burnout Done running the business, emotionally depleted, and wants this over. May disengage from the process unpredictably. High deal-fragility risk even when they are nominally cooperative. (What to do: move as fast as the deal safely allows. Simplify)

• The four personality patterns feeds The Emotional First-Timer: The Emotional First-Timer supports the four personality patterns.
• The four personality patterns feeds The Sophisticated Repeat Seller: The Sophisticated Repeat Seller supports the four personality patterns.
• The four personality patterns feeds The Burned Seller: The Burned Seller supports the four personality patterns.
• The four personality patterns feeds The Exhausted Burnout: The Exhausted Burnout supports the four personality patterns.