When I first started exploring ETA, I had a very specific picture in my head of what “the right deal” would look like. It would be clean, growing, well-documented, with a great team and motivated seller. No skeletons in the closet. No rough edges.
The problem? That deal doesn’t exist.
Every deal I’ve seen—every real deal—comes with its share of imperfections. Customer concentration. Deferred maintenance. Owner dependency. Team turnover. These aren’t deal-breakers. They’re the reality of buying a small business.
The danger is in waiting for perfect. I’ve met searchers who’ve been “just about ready” for two years. Always one red flag away from walking. And they never close anything.
So what should you look for instead?
- A business you understand. Something where you can quickly learn the ropes—or already have adjacent experience.
- A seller you can work with. Trust and transition matter more than spreadsheets.
- A risk profile you can live with. No deal is without risk. The key is understanding it and building a plan around it.
ETA is about finding enough right to move forward. You grow into the rest. The best operators I know didn’t find perfect businesses. They found imperfect ones with potential—and stepped up.
Don’t wait for flawless. Wait for aligned. That’s where real deals live.
