Woman Owned Business Succession with Patty Block

george grombacher 0:02
Patty block is the founder and president of the block group. They’re an organization helping women experts grow value and build exit ready businesses, she is the author of your hidden advantage. Welcome to the show, Patti.

Patty Block 0:16
Thank you. I’m so glad to be here.

george grombacher 0:18
excited to have you on. Tell us a little about your personal life more about your work, why you do what you do?

Patty Block 0:27
Well, when I was growing up, my mom used to make these fabulous cookies, the whole house smell good, it was warm, the cookies were gooey. And all my wife, I watched my mom eat the broken cookies. But it wasn’t until I was a teenager that I even thought to ask her. Why do you only eat the broken cookies? Do they taste better? And she laughed and said, No, I eat the broken cookies. So you can have the whole ones. And that memory came rushing back to me several years ago, when I was struggling to put words around a really tricky pattern that I have seen in the decades that I’ve worked with women business owners. That That sense of spirit of self sacrifice that we saw in our role models, our moms and our grandmothers. We bring that right into our businesses. It’s what I call the broken cookie effect. And it’s when everyone around us, our staff, our families, our clients, everybody gets the whole cookie, and we live on crumbs. And nowhere do I see that more acutely than when women exit their businesses. And there’s so much doubt and fear. I mean, that’s really the broken cookie effect inaction. Because that doubt and fear and the mystery of what does it take to get exit ready? What does that really mean? And can I really let go of my business, because for the women that I work with, who are experts in their fields, largely in professional services, that’s a really hard transition, because you’re actually transitioning part of your identity. And there’s so much emotional, and certainly logistical and practical stuff that’s wrapped up in that. So that’s the work that I do. That’s what I’m super passionate about, is helping women build wealth by unlocking the value that’s inside their business.

george grombacher 2:33
I love it. I love everything about that story. Well, not everything because it’s is it sad isn’t the right emotion, feeling sad for somebody that has a heart of gold, but not any gold in their pocket, because they’re so self self sacrificing, it’s just something that needs to change?

Patty Block 2:54
Well, we have to become aware of it first. And because it is so deeply ingrained in us, especially as women, that’s really how we were raised as girls, is you put everybody else first. And I’m not implying that you need to be selfish, and always put yourself first. And that’s not even possible. For most of us. It’s really about finding a balance between serving others and taking care of yourself. And in my view, that includes building wealth for yourself.

george grombacher 3:28
I was literally just thinking about this similar idea this morning. Of it’s okay to be self sacrificing, but not at the cost of your self reliance. And I think that we all intellectually know that we’re supposed to pay ourselves first when it comes to personal finance and money. But Sounds easy, does hard. And it’s been to your point ingrained in if it’s been ingrained in you whether you’re a man or a woman, but more specifically women since you’re a child, it’s tough to tough to break out of that.

Patty Block 4:01
It is and that’s one of the pieces of the mission that I work towards, is bringing awareness. And when I speak with a group of women, and we’re let’s say we’re on a video conference, and every woman is nodding her head, because we’ve all experienced that broken cookie effect. And we’ve seen it in our role models. And that’s the other challenge for women. We don’t have many role models of women who have built their company and then sold it or transitioned it. You don’t necessarily have to sell your company, but there is value that you’ve built over the years. And so for many women, our businesses our life’s work, it is for me, and so it’s really a shame to have to close the doors. And I’ve actually experienced that because in a former life I was a political consultant and a lobbyist and I all of a sudden, I’m 35 years old, I have three little kids at home, a thriving business, and a surprise, divorce. And realized very quickly that, especially because of lobbying required a lot of travel, I needed to close my business, I had no clue that I could sell it. I had built it over eight years, it was. But I didn’t know, I didn’t know that I could sell it, I didn’t have the first clue what to do or who to talk to. And so I ended up closing the doors. And to me, that’s, that’s a crime, that should not happen to other women. And again, it’s part of why I’ve made that my mission because I’ve experienced that. And now since 2006, I have helped other women go through that transition, avoid the pitfalls, because there are many, especially for women. And, and sometimes, especially because the exit planning world and the selling your business world are very male dominated. And it’s unfortunate that often women get taken advantage of, and they sell their companies for a lot less than they should or could get. And they don’t, they’re not aware of all of those things that can cause problems for them, either in the moment or down the line. So again, I’m an advocate for women from the standpoint of, I don’t want anyone to be damaged emotionally, financially, or to adversely affect your staff. And that is usually the number one thing that women tell me they care most about, even above the dollar amount. If they sell their company, they’re much more focused on taking care of their staff, which again, is part of the broken cookie effect, right? So, so it’s very circular, and no pun intended. And the idea is I want to raise awareness, I want to guide women, so that they really can build wealth without being damaged in the process.

george grombacher 7:16
So you have the very common experience of laying out the broken cookie effect. everybody on the call is like, yeah, totally get it, it makes sense to me. Is that usually enough to how to, to pique their interest to engage in this process of here are the common pitfalls? Or how does that usually manifest a workout?

Patty Block 7:46
Well, it’s a great question. It does raise curiosity, and that’s beneficial. And as a thought leader, I’m raising the visibility of this issue. So all of that is great. But I think what you’re heading towards is how hard it is to change our behavior. And to change the way we think, and because it’s so deeply ingrained. And you’re right, it is very difficult. And so when people ask me, what is the first step, to start that transition journey, it is about the way you think, and why you believe, good and bad. It’s what you think that’s limiting you. And it’s what you believe that is part of your value set. And the first thing that I do when I’m working with a woman business owner is start developing their roadmap. And in that we start with what do you care most about? What do you want your life to look like before, during and after this transition, financially, as well as logistically and all of the elements that they may not be thinking about? Because they don’t have a crystal ball, and they don’t know what it looks like down the line. And through my experience, and expertise, I’ve seen so many different scenarios, and experienced all of the challenges. So mindset is definitely the first piece of it. And it doesn’t mean you have to change what you believe it means taking things that are limiting you. And you may not even realize, you believe a certain thing that’s keeping you stuck. So we start with that. And then I do an analysis inside their business of their current business assets. Because one of the misunderstandings is if you get to a certain level of revenue, maybe then you’re ready to sell your company. And that’s really not the measurement to use. And every business owner knows revenue comes and goes. revenue can be up one month and down the next. And because of that, that is not determining the value of your company. It’s one of the factors. But it’s not that on its own. So because of that, we need to see a broader picture. And you already have assets inside your business, but you may not realize it.

george grombacher 10:18
I appreciate all that. And the importance of getting in my head, right, and recognizing that I am worthy, I’ve created something that is of immense value, and I am deserving of getting paid Exactly. Not necessarily what I believe I’m worth today, but maybe a lot more than I’m potentially already thinking, because I’m limiting myself and moving away from just focus on revenue, because that goes up and it goes down. But in fact, there are more things inside my business that are assets that do drive the value, what are what are some of those things?

Patty Block 10:59
Well, it starts with your intellectual property. And especially because I deal with expertise based businesses, if you’ve developed programs, if you’ve written a book, if you’ve trademarked anything, or patented, something, all of those things are assets. And we want to make sure that they are optimized. Sometimes when you mentioned the beginning, I’ve written a book called your hidden advantage. Sometimes, as I’m talking about, excuse me, as I’m talking about the challenges that women face, I forget to talk about the book, I’m not showcasing it as much as I potentially could. And so those bringing that to the owners awareness of how you can optimize the assets you already have. And then how you can build other assets. Certainly, if you have physical assets, like if your company owns the office space, if you own a car of any vehicles, those are certainly assets, a buyer won’t care about your computer equipment, because now it’s almost become disposable. But real assets and intangible assets are very valuable. And we want to intentionally build those.

george grombacher 12:26
That makes a lot of sense. All right. So being intentional about it, understanding awareness, realizing that it’s possible, having a deeper appreciation and understanding for the assets and the value of your business. You go through that accounting for lack of a better term. What are some of the other pitfalls that that are common for women?

Patty Block 12:52
One of them is that I hear frequently, is a lot of women think they don’t have anything to sell. So we start with that foundational belief that no one’s going to value what I’ve built. And, again, that is where you get really stuck. So that’s part of the benefit of the analysis, because I can show you exactly where the value is inside your business, and what you can build upon. Right. So that’s one of the first things that is a problem. But the other thing is that, that fear of letting go understanding that this transition, excuse me, this transition is life changing. And trying to do it on your own, with without somebody who’s experienced and guiding you, is really challenging. So that sense of I’m very alone, I don’t know who to talk to, I don’t know what advice to accept, that is really tricky, and not knowing who to trust. All of that keeps us very stuck. As you get further along in the process. One of the big pitfalls is, again, in this male dominated industry, they’re women think differently, we think differently, we operate differently, we tend to value certain things differently than men do. And so, because of that, when you’re dealing only with male advisors, they may not recognize that. And often there’s a cookie cutter approach, pun intended. And there’s a cookie category approach to your exit strategy to your succession planning, to the transaction itself to all of those pieces. And I don’t believe that there’s no cookie cutter answer for how you should or could exit your business. And we’re all going to exit one day. Whether it’s fun Ontario not. So if you plan ahead and future proof your business, so that you’re building value every step of the way, then you have so many more choices. If you want to sell your company, you’ve positioned it to do so. And to get great value from it, if you prefer not to sell, let’s say you want to pass it on to your employees, or a family member, and perhaps not sell it, those are all options. And there are all kinds of great ways to put those plans together. But if you’re not aware of them, and you think that your only option is closing the doors, which is exactly what I thought in my political consulting business, then you don’t have choices, and you just do what you think you’re supposed to do. And meanwhile, you’re missing out on all of those opportunities. And for a lot of men, they talk about they think about, they are active in planning ahead. And for a lot of women we’re not, we’re juggling a lot of things. And we’re very focused on the here and now. And that’s part of the awareness that I want to raise.

george grombacher 16:14
That makes sense. And I love all the ponds. So thank you for that. I don’t know what the percentages are, I imagined for the general market, men and women, all different kinds of people that actually start and grow a business that’s saleable or sellable. It’s got to be pretty small. And then the percentage of women that start a business is going to be probably even smaller, just because women have I don’t believe have been starting businesses for quite as long as men have. So there’s a lot that goes into that. So the idea that it would be cookie cutter is just sounds silly to me, because you’re so unique and rare, and the fact that you are able to accomplish this wonderful thing. So why wouldn’t we tailor and put together the process that’s going to be specifically for you?

Patty Block 17:01
Exactly. And that is exactly the approach I take every owner is singular. And that requires a customized approach. And every person cares about different things. So yes, it really cannot be cookie cutter, the transaction piece may not be that complex, but everything leading up to that transaction. It certainly is. And actually, I can give you some of the statistics of the small businesses in the United States, only 30% successfully sell their company when they’re ready to sell. And of that 30% I think it’s like 2%, or women owned businesses. So it is a tiny percentage. And what that means is 70% of business owners are left with no viable option when they’re ready to leave their business. And sometimes it’s not voluntary, sometimes they have a health issue, or a family member does. And why should your life’s work and with a tragedy and and with things out of your control. There are so many things out of our control. Let’s control what we can and the future of your business is something you can control.

george grombacher 18:23
Well, Saad Patti, thank you so much for coming on. Where can people learn more about you? How can they engage? And where can they get their copy of your hidden advantage?

Patty Block 18:32
Thank you so much. I’m so glad to be here. Your hidden advantage, you can find your hidden advantage.com And there are some bonuses there that are companion pieces to the book. So your hidden advantage.com If you’d like to see how ready you are for an exit, you can check out my exit Readiness Index at xi dash exits.com.

george grombacher 19:02
Excellent. If you enjoyed this as much as I did Chapin to your appreciation and share today’s show with a friend who also appreciates good ideas and certainly are all the business owners in your life and more certainly for all the women owned businesses in your life, pick up your copy of your hidden advantage at your hidden advantage.com. And if you are a business owner, if you are women, if you’re a female that owns a business, go to Xi dash exits.com and take that exit ready assessment, find out where you’re doing great and maybe where some opportunities might be and engage in the process. Thanks again, Patti.

Patty Block 19:42
Thank you.

george grombacher 19:43
Till next time, remember, do your part by doing your best

george grombacher 16:00
So if I want my iPhone, and my Tesla and my Bitcoin to work, we need to get the metal out of the ground.

Pierre Leveille 16:07
Absolutely. Without it, we cannot do it.

george grombacher 16:13
Why? Why is there a Why has production been going down.

Pierre Leveille 16:21
Because the large mines that are producing most of the copper in the world, the grades are going down slowly they’re going there, they’re arriving near the end of life. So and of life of mines in general means less production. And in the past, at least 15 years, the exploration expenditure for copper were pretty low, because the price of copper was low. And when the price is low, companies are tending to not invest more so much in exploration, which is what we see today. It’s it’s, it’s not the way to look at it. Because nobody 15 years ago was able to predict that there would be a so massive shortage, or it’s so massive demand coming. But in the past five years, or let’s say since the since 10 years, we have seen that more and more coming. And then the by the time you react start exploring and there’s more money than then ever that is putting in put it in expression at the moment for copper at least. And what we see is that the it takes time, it could take up to 2025 years between the time you find a deposit that it gets in production. So but but the year the time is counted. So it’s it’s very important to so you will see company reopening old mines, what it will push also, which is not bad, it will force to two, it will force to find a it will force to find ways of recalibrating customer, you know the metals, that will be more and more important.

george grombacher 18:07
So finding, okay, so for lack of a better term recycling metals that are just sitting around somewhere extremely important. Yeah. And then going and going back to historic minds that maybe for lack of technology, or just lack of will or reasons, but maybe now because there’s such a demand, there’s an appetite to go back to those.

Pierre Leveille 18:33
Yes, but there will be a lot of failures into that for many reasons. But the ones that will be in that will resume mining it’s just going to be a short term temporary solution. No it’s it’s not going to be you need to find deposit that will that will operate 50 years you know at least it’s 25 to 50 years at least and an old mind that you do in production in general it’s less than 10 years.

george grombacher 19:03
Got it. Oh there we go. Up here. People are ready for your difference making tip What do you have for them

Pierre Leveille 19:14
You mean an investment or

george grombacher 19:17
whatever you’re into, you’ve got so much life experience with raising a family and doing business all over the world and having your kids go to school in Africa so a tip on copper or whatever you’re into.

Pierre Leveille 19:34
But there’s two things I like to see and I was telling my children many times and I always said you know don’t focus on what will bring you specifically money don’t think of Getting Rich. Think of doing what you what you like, what you feel your your your your your, you know you have been born to do so use your most you skills, do what you like, do what you wet well, and good things will happen to you. And I can see them grow in their life. And I can tell you that this is what happens. And sometimes you have setback like I had recently. But if we do things properly, if we do things that we like, and we liked that project, we were very passionate about that project, not only me, all my team, and if we do things properly, if we do things correctly, good things will happen. And we will probably get the project back had to go forward or we will find another big project that will be the launch of a new era. So that’s my most important tip in life. Do what you like, do it with your best scale and do it well and good things will happen.

george grombacher 20:49
Pierre Leveille 21:03
Thank you. I was happy to be with you to today.

george grombacher 21:06
Damn, tell us the websites and where where people can connect and find you.

Pierre Leveille 21:13
The it’s Deep South resources.com. So pretty simple.

george grombacher 21:18
Perfect. Well, if you enjoyed this as much as I did show up here your appreciation and share today’s show with a friend who also appreciate good ideas, go to deep south resources, calm and learn all about what they’re working on and track their progress.

Pierre Leveille 21:32
Thanks. Thanks, have a nice day.

george grombacher 21:36
And until next time, keep fighting the good fight. We’re all in this together.