The Gift of Not Knowing: Why You Don’t Have to Be Ready to Begin Transition
Episode Description: In this reflective solo episode, Elizabeth Ledoux explores one of the most overlooked advantages in business transition: not knowing. Drawing from her own succession journey and a recent client conversation, Elizabeth challenges the belief that owners and successors must feel “ready” before beginning transition work. Tap or click the play button below to listen to The Gift […]
The Gift of Not Knowing: Why Readiness Is a Myth in Business Transition
I was on a call with a business owner who had done everything right. He’d read “It’s a Journey,” worked through some of the exercises, thought deeply about his transition. He has a daughter working in the business and a strong non-family employee. Both could be part of his future plan. We were talking about […]
The Question That Could Derail Your Transition: Who Actually Owns Your Digital Assets?
I had a conversation with Paige Wiese recently that reminded me why some transitions fail despite perfect financials and flawless legal work. Paige is the founder of Tree Ring Digital, a Denver-based digital agency. Over her 16 years in the industry, she’s developed a framework for protecting digital assets during business transitions. “There’s value in […]
Digital Assets Are Business Assets: Protecting Value Before Succession or Sale
Episode Description: In this episode, Elizabeth Ledoux is joined by Paige Wiese, founder and CEO of Tree Ring Digital, to unpack one of the most overlooked—and increasingly critical—components of business transition: digital assets. Paige shares how websites, domains, marketing platforms, data, and third-party tools are now core infrastructure assets that directly influence valuation, deal confidence, […]
Why 60% of Business Transitions Fail (And How to Be in the 95% That Succeed)
After 30 years in this work, there’s one statistic that still keeps me up at night. 60% of transitions are going to fail. When I share this number with business owners, the gut reaction is like, well, they didn’t lock down their will enough or they had a bad tax strategy. And so all the […]
Why Transition 3.0 Changes Everything: Our Evolve Program
Episode Description: In this rich, energetic conversation, Elizabeth Ledoux and successor-turned-partner Andrea Carpenter break down what’s changing in transition planning—and why most families are still doing it the old way. They introduce Transition 3.0, a collaborative, people-first model where owners and successors design the future together rather than in isolation. Tap or click the play […]
What Does Fair Really Mean in Family Business Succession?
What does “fair” look like when you’re buying the family business? I come back to this question often, because in family business succession, fairness isn’t just a spreadsheet. It’s an emotional equation with a constantly moving denominator: siblings, history, legacy, expectation. I recently had a conversation with Mitch Gambert, third-generation owner of Gambert Shirts in […]
When Fear Keeps Your Family Business Stuck
Every business owner knows fear. It shows up differently for each person—sometimes as a tight grip on the financials, sometimes as “waiting for the right moment,” sometimes as silence where there could be conversation. In this week’s solo episode of The Business Transition Roadmap podcast, Elizabeth Ledoux explores how fear quietly stalls even the most […]
Facing Fear: Why Staying Stuck Costs More Than Moving Forward
Episode Description: In this solo episode, Elizabeth Ledoux explores one of the most underestimated forces in business transition: fear. Drawing from current client experiences and years of transition strategy work, she reveals the hidden fears that keep founders and successors stuck—fear of loss, fear of not being good enough, fear of conflict, fear of regret, […]