Andre J. Peschong

It is amazing that while on vacation trying to tune out the business and all the accompanying voices in my head that somehow something always brings you back to thinking about a deal or something business related.  Case in point, playing golf in wonderful Carmel at Poppy Hills Golf Club, a spectacular course that is in the rotation during the Pebble beach AT&T golf tournament.  After playing a somewhat mediocre front nine not really thinking about anything, but the beautiful setting and the perfect weather, my mind started to wander.  It wanders often as I am sure I have some form of ADD, I started thinking about a complex deal that I am currently in the middle of and some of the posturing from the various parties in the transaction.  It reminded me of the golf game I was supposed to be enjoying in regards to all of the thoughts that go through my head right before I start my swing.  A deal, complex or not, has the same evaluation that needs to be thought through before the next steps can be taken.  Each decision made affects the rest of the deal or in this case the golf game.  When I approach my ball I have to assess the lie of the ball, the yardage to the green, the wind, pin placement etc…  The most important part of all of this assessment is playing the ball as it lies.  There is no improving it or making it better which would affect the outcome of the shot and the game, unfairly.  A deal has many of the same aspects to it.  You must evaluate it on the merits of value, who the investors would be, management capabilities, market conditions, pier group analysis, etc…  Deals can be very similar to golf specifically regarding all the nuances which cannot be controlled.  Each shot presents its’ own set of circumstances that need to be evaluated and the outcome of each shot will be reflected in the ending score of the round.  In a deal each set of hurdles that come up need to be evaluated and considered prior to effectively maneuvering a way around to the conclusion and closing of the deal.

The point trying to being made with the aforementioned diatribe is that a deal has many complexities and that sometimes when you least expect it (as in vacation time) something happens that can trigger a thought or better yet a solution.  Seasoned deal guys understand this and it is typically ingrained into their psyche.  Sometimes when you are most relaxed and as far from a deal or transaction as possible the best ideas seem to float to the surface.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites