Everything I've taught about starting, buying, and scaling businesses.

A buy-side primer

If you're sitting on a W-2 paycheck thinking "I should just buy something instead of starting from zero," that instinct is right. There are millions of small business owners in this country who are aging out, can't pass it to their kids, and want to sell. Most of them have never been on Shark Tank. Most of them just want a clean exit and someone to take care of what they built.

Your job as a buyer isn't to outsmart them. It's to be the person they want to hand the keys to.

This is the playbook I used.

Step 1: Use BizBuySell

Start here: bizbuysell.com

Off-market deals are great and we'll talk about those later, but in the case of small businesses, when you start by looking on BBS you've already cleared the first barrier: the seller WANTS to sell.

You can browse by industry, geography, asking price, cash flow. Get familiar with the platform before you start reaching out. Look at 50 listings before you contact one.

Step 2: Define your buy box

Going on BBS without a buy box is like swimming in the ocean instead of a pool. Your focus narrows over time, but to start, answer these:

Strategic questions:

• What do you actually want out of owning a business?
• What's the GOAL of having this business?
• What would the next step look like (another business, expanding this one)?
• What do you want operations to look like day-to-day?

Practical questions:

• What kinds of businesses can you wrap your head around?
• Do you plan to be more absentee or hands-on?
• How much SDE (Seller Discretionary Earnings = cash flow) do you need to support yourself?
• Do you want a relocatable business or one that stays put?
• How far are you willing to travel?

Example buy box for an accounting firm:

• SDE of $250-350k
• Seller financing available
• Staff willing to stay
• Transition period with the owner
• Real estate not required

Example buy box for waste management:

• SDE of $250-350k
• Multiple trucks
• List of established clients/contracts
• Current drivers staying on
• Seller financing
• Transition period
• Leased or owned location for equipment

Step 3: Square away the money

You don't need to be wealthy. That's not the game.

Simple structures:

• Seller carries the note
• Conventional bank loan
• SBA loan
• Cash

Combo structures:

• Seller carry + your cash down
• Seller carry + SBA loan + your cash
• Seller carry + SBA + investor cash
• Seller carry + investor + your cash

The point is you have room to be creative. It's not cut and dry.

A practical first move: get SBA pre-qualified. Having that letter in hand shows brokers and owners you're serious, not kicking tires.

Step 4: Build relationships with brokers and owners

This is a team sport. Reach out to brokers attached to deals you see on BBS. Don't pitch. Ask questions. Tell them your buy box.

But the ones who know more than brokers? The owners themselves.

Have as many conversations with owners as you can. When you do:

1. You learn an industry you want to jump into
2. You learn how to operate in that industry
3. You sometimes find out you DON'T like the industry (saves you time)
4. You learn about other investments those owners have

You're skipping the line and going directly to the source.

Step 5: Create systems

The work gets messy fast if you don't organize it. Doesn't have to be fancy. Use a Google Sheet. Track every deal you look at, every conversation, every follow-up.

I built a team of VAs to help me with this once it scaled. But you don't need that yet. Start with the sheet.

Step 6: Work on your pitch

When you're talking to an owner, you're not pitching a deal. You're showing them you'll take care of what they built.

Things to actually mean (don't say them if you don't):

• "I'm really interested in your company."
• "I love what you've built. You've created a legacy."
• "I want to carry this forward."
• "I'll do everything I can to improve it."
• "I respect the industry."

The point isn't to be fake. It's to express that you genuinely want to leave a legacy. That's why you're doing this. That's why they built it.

Step 7: Filter fast, focus slow

You'll look at a TON of deals before you find the one. Filter quickly so you don't waste time.

My 30-second filter is just three questions:

1. What's the management structure?
2. Based on that, can you be semi-absentee? (If not, you're buying a job. Negative ghost rider.)
3. Do the numbers work? After seller note and SBA, what's your profit?

Step 8: Get creative with financing

Real example:

• Purchase Price: $2.6M
• Buyer puts 5% down
• Seller matches 5%
• SBA loan covers the rest (90%)
• Full standby on seller note

Boom. For 5% down, the buyer now owns a business worth $2.6M.

NOTE: An SBA loan typically requires 10% down minimum. 5% from buyer + 5% from seller still counts.

Step 9: Red flags

Four flags that should send you running:

1. The seller changes terms often during negotiation.
2. The seller wants to leave the business immediately when you take over.
3. The seller doesn't have references for prior investors and partners.
4. The seller won't let you talk to employees.

There might seem to be legit reasons for each. Trust your spidey sense anyway.

Step 10: Know your why

This should actually be #1, not #10. It's the foundation of everything else.

Why are you doing this in the first place?

Why are you spending weekends and the precious gaps in your day on calls, listings, owner conversations, deal models?

I love this stuff, but I don't do it for free. I'm doing it to build a different life for my family and to build a bridge out of middle class.

I am NOT buying a job. I'm not looking to relocate, drop everything, and become the operator of someone else's grind.

Your reasons might be different. But you'd better know them. Otherwise the search will burn you out before it pays you.

More places to find businesses

BizBuySell isn't the only spot:

• Tworld.com
• Acquire.com (more for online businesses / SaaS)
• Websiteclosers.com

Newsletters worth subscribing to:

• Clint Fiore
• Michael Girdley
• Codie Sanchez

I want you successful more than I need you only subscribed to mine.

Types of businesses worth looking at

Not a complete list. Just to get the wheels turning:

Accounting Firms · Title Companies · Notary Services · CFO Services · Property Management · Property Maintenance · Tree Trimming · Pool Maintenance · HVAC · Plumbing · Electrical · Pest Control · SaaS · ATM Routes · Vending Machines · Senior Home Care · Car Washes · Manufacturing · Window Cleaning · Pressure Washing · Auto Dent Removal · Assisted Living · Trucking · Residential Painting · Landscaping · Hair Salons · Nail Salons · Barber Shops · Auto Maintenance · Med Spas · FedEx Routes · Dumpster Rental · Home Cleaning · Pet Grooming · Roofing · Moving Services · Towing · Wealth Management · Insurance · Junk Removal · Oil Change Centers · Remediation · Tent Rental · Parking Lots · Storage Facilities · Fence Installation · Surveying · Carpet Cleaning · Car Detailing · Packing Companies · Laundromats

How to get deals sent to you on autopilot

On-market:

1. Look through BBS, Tworld, etc. (these are publicly listed by brokers)
2. Contact the broker through their listed email and share your buy box
3. Subscribe to their personal newsletters and stay in touch. These are still on-market deals, but the relationship gets you to them faster

Off-market:

There are a hundred ways to do this. The basics:

1. Build a list of businesses in your buy box. Send a cold email or call expressing interest.
2. Reach out to your network for referrals. Talk to CPAs, attorneys, bankers, real estate agents, financial advisors. Tell them what you're looking for.
3. Follow up. Provide value to those connections without expecting anything in return.

Don't overcomplicate it

Nod to Codie Sanchez:

• We don't invest in deals we don't understand.
• We don't do complex deals.
• We don't buy complicated sexy businesses.
• We don't do crazy discounted cash flows on our first deal.
• We keep it stupid simple.

Why storage

The secret is out. People know about storage. It's been trending for years and rightfully so. It's arguably the best asset class in real estate.

The three Ts (Tenants, Toilets, Termites) don't exist. The unit is a box. The customer pays automatically. The operating overhead is minimal.

Storage was where I spent a lot of time before AI took over my brain. We owned facilities in Kansas and South Carolina. The model still works. Here's the 30,000-foot overview.

Step 1: How to find a storage facility

If you find a good deal, the money will come. I'm living proof of that.

But you have to find the deal. So:

Find a good market first. Boxes to check:

• Growing population (even .5% annually counts)
• Moderate median household income
• Low market saturation (not a ton of storage already in the area)

Then once you have a market:

• Go to Google. Type in your chosen city.
• Click on Maps to see the city map.
• Search "Self Storage" in the nearby results.
• All the storage pins should pop up.
• Filter for facilities that look like value-add opportunities:
  • No website or poor website
  • Old sign out front
  • 15k square feet or bigger
  • Gravel roads
  • No gate or old gate
  • Old paint job

These features = opportunity.

Then call the facility. Talk with the owner. Tell them you're interested in purchasing. Yes, just call. The number is on Google.

Step 2: How to value the facility

You've found a facility you like. The owner is open to selling. Now what's it worth?

Back-of-napkin valuation in 30 seconds.

Get these 4 questions answered:

1. How many units does it have?
2. What's the square footage?
3. What's the occupancy?
4. What's the annual gross revenue?

Plug into this formula:

[Annual Gross Revenue]
× Occupancy %  (e.g. 0.85 for 85% occupancy)
× 0.62  (estimated expenses, unless you know the exact number)
÷ Cap Rate  (use 0.07 minimum, higher is better)
= Suggested Purchase Price

Cap rate quick note: Net Operating Income ÷ current market value. Don't go below a 7 cap on your first deal.

Worked example:

$200,000 annual gross
× 0.85
× 0.62
÷ 0.07
= $1,505,714

For an 8 cap → $1,317,500
For a 9 cap → $1,171,111

So your range on a fair offer is roughly $1.17M – $1.5M.

Even faster method (when asking price is known):

ASKING PRICE ÷ Monthly revenue

If the result is 115 or LOWER, it's worth a real look.

Example:

$1,000,000 asking ÷ $10,000 monthly = 100 → GOOD deal

Step 3: Lock down the deal

You've found it. You've valued it. You think it's a good deal. Submit a Letter of Intent now.

LOIs are non-binding. Submitting one doesn't mean you put money down. It's an offer. It opens the conversation.

The more LOIs you submit, the more comfortable you'll get. We sometimes sent several a week when we were grinding leads.

(Note: I'm not a lawyer. Get legal counsel as you get closer to closing. We always did.)

A real talk caveat

With this email alone, I'd be confident sending you out to find and lock down deals. Once you have a deal locked, it becomes a matter of finding people whose money wants to work for them.

If you have networking groups or high-income friends, awesome. If not, that's where communities help. Once you have the deal, the capital usually finds you.

More resources

• Pace Morby's storage breakdown: Read it
• "How Anyone Can Get In The Self Storage Game": Read it

You're here because you have the bug

You want to do something BIG. Maybe you want to buy a business. Maybe you want to start one. Either way, the principles below work for both.

The amount of info on "how to start a business" could fill libraries. (And does.) Let me cut to the parts that actually matter.

Just do it

I know. Annoying advice. But hear me out.

This is a mindset more than a tactic. You won't reach the goals I know you have by overthinking. You won't get there by researching more than anyone else. And you DEFINITELY won't get there by giving up when it gets hard.

Your success is directly correlated with the number of failures you have. You don't HAVE to fail, but you do have to try. Taking action, getting feedback, adjusting. That always wins out over research and analysis paralysis.

It's abstract. I know. But here's an example.

I knew I had a story to tell. I knew I had value to share. I'd bought a couple businesses, started more than I can count, had successes and failures and TONS of lessons. I wanted to share that with people who wanted to do big things too.

So I started writing.

For a LONG time I was writing to literally no one. Year-long email sequence. Zero subscribers.

But it wasn't about that. It was about the fact that I started. Several iterations later, here we are. You're here.

Just start.

Generate ideas like crazy

Once you start, you need to get the wheels turning. The best way: get comfortable generating ideas.

Most won't be good. Write them down anyway. The point isn't to come up with perfect ideas. It's to get used to the process so the wheels don't seize up.

It's like the gym. You don't show up day one and bench 300. You show up, lift the lighter weights, work up. But it starts with showing up.

I have a note in my phone called "Daily Ideas." Anything that pops in goes in. I have separate notes for article ideas and video ideas. If it shows up, it gets written down. I work through it later.

Five ways to think about new ideas (h/t James Altucher, Skip The Line):

• Idea Addition: Take something and make it better or add features. Creating a podcast to go with your newsletter.
• Idea Subtraction: Take the friction off the table. Want to write a book? Self-publish, skip the traditional route.
• Idea Multiplication: Find something that works, scale it elsewhere.
• Idea Division: Niche down. Websites for companies → websites for record labels → websites for rap artists.
• Idea Sex: Combine two ideas into one. Cell phone + iPod = iPhone.

You don't need a business plan

Once you have an idea, you don't need a business plan. You need customers.

The product is your idea, sure. But more people than just YOU need to want it. Find the demand FIRST. Creating demand is for a different day. Right now your goal is to take that idea and make money from it as fast as humanly possible.

Step 1: Idea
Step 2: Find Demand

Two ways to find demand:

1. Direct outreach. Cold call or cold email the people who'd buy what you're selling. Be straight up about what you do and how you can help. The goal is to get to the right person, share the value, and make it a no-brainer to say yes.

   Example pitch (for a "car blogger" niche): "I'll assess your dealership site and the traffic you're getting, and I'll map out a full plan to improve it. I'll also write a month of articles to be sent out 1x weekly, free of charge."

2. Community/platform engagement. Listen and engage on Reddit, Facebook groups, Craigslist, Twitter, wherever your target customer lives. What are they complaining about? What do they need that nobody's providing?

   Example (a garbage service in a nice neighborhood): Find the people unhappy with the current service. Don't just ask if they want a better one. Make them put money where their mouth is. Set up a low-cost landing page where people can pre-pay for the service. If enough people pre-pay, green light. If not, refunds.

   This actually works. Spencer Scott built a 6-figure trash company in 30 days using exactly this play. Pre-sold the service for $99 for 3 months. 350 signups. $31k ARR before the LLC even existed.

Build your personal brand

"When you position yourself as someone on a journey and document your process and your progress, you become relatable, and that is what audiences long for." (Noah Kagan)

Whatever you're buying, building, or scaling, customers return to people they know, like, and trust.

Building a personal brand can only help you. (Unless you're a jerk on your personal brand. Then it can't.)

Where do you start?

The gurus say pick one platform and lean in. I'm not a guru, so I say try them and see what feels best. Optimize a few. The platforms you DON'T post to should still match who you are if someone goes looking.

I prefer the written word. So I lean into Twitter, LinkedIn, Medium. I have YouTube and IG set up but they're secondary. I don't use TikTok. Facebook is mostly personal.

Bio examples to get you started:

"First-time business acquirer just here to share the journey and the lessons learned along the way."

"Car enthusiast and automotive blogger helping dealerships actually have interesting websites. Sharing how I'm doing it."

People follow you to learn and receive value. Everything you do for the first time can be a lesson you teach others. The more people who follow you on your journey, the easier it gets to recruit those people to help you build more.

I'll leave you with one of my all-time favorite quotes:

"One day you will tell your story of how you overcame what you went through and it will be someone else's survival guide." (Brené Brown)

What's next?

You made it to the end of the library. That puts you in a small group.

If anything in here clicks and you want to talk about it, hit reply on any of my Sunday emails. My inbox is always open.

If you want to be in a room of entrepreneurs actually doing this stuff: TKO Community →

If you want help running AI in your business specifically: just reply with "AI assessment" and I'll send you details.

Stay in the fight.

— Kev