Fortune, Fire, Fate: The Exit Checklist
Before you sell your company, run it through three filters:
Fortune. Fire. Fate
Fortune:
1. The Optionality Test - Does this exit cross the "never worry about money again" line?
Fire:
2. The Energy Curve - Is your hunger for the business increasing or fading?
Fate:
3. The Regret Test - Fast forward 5 years. Industry headwinds? Tailwinds? Identity crisis? Any regrets?
That middle one matters most
The business exists because of your energy. When that fades, everything follows
Most founders obsess over valuations and buyers, but skip the only thing that matters: should you actually sell. The Fortune, Fire, Fate checklist forces you to pause, zoom out, and pressure-test your exit from three brutally honest angles. Use it as a pre-flight check before you hit “accept” on any LOI.
The Psychology Behind It
You are the engine of the business, and engines don’t run well on fumes. When your internal fire dies, performance quietly slips, opportunities get ignored, and A-players feel it. That is why “Fire” often matters more than Fortune or Fate: a fully lit founder can outrun bad timing, but no price can fix a hollowed-out identity and zero energy.
The Exit Checklist: Fortune, Fire, Fate
- Fortune – The Optionality Test: Will this number push you past the “never worry about money again” line, or just into “slightly nicer rat race”?
- Fire – The Energy Curve: Is your curiosity, excitement, and obsession with this business compounding, or are you forcing yourself to care?
- Fate – The Regret Test: In five years, will this industry likely boom or bust, and will you be proud or pissed about walking away when you did?
Real-World Exits That Passed the Filters
Basecamp famously turned down acquisition offers because their Fire and Fate filters said they still had energy and upside, even when the Fortune number was tempting.
Mailchimp sold after decades of bootstrapping because the founders had hit their Fortune goals and felt their Fire for the next phase fading.