I've had a couple of experiences in the last few days which have been purifying. Times have been tough at ClearPlay, and while we have some good prospects, we've been scraping our bellies doing the cash crawl. Yesterday we had a meeting with one of our investors, who is a prince of a man. He wasn't expecting us to ask him for more money, but when we were finished I walked him to his car and laid it on the line. I told him that I'd long ago gotten past two things. First, I can ask for money without embarassment, because I know it's my job. And second, if someone refuses me I'm fine with that.
And I completely believed what I was saying. If he would have turned me down, I would not have thought less of him, and I wouldn't have taken it personally. But as it was, he went to his car and wrote the company a check that will help us immensely. Pretty cool.
Today we had a conference call with a group of guys that just took their company public, raising over $100 million in cash. They have been interested in acquiring us for quite a while, and now that they are past their IPO they asked to reignite the discussion. Four of us sat in the room, all a little envious of their success. But we told our story without pretention or embellishment. We didn't hide a thing, and I'm guessing we surprised them with our brutal honesty. It might not have been the best salesmanship, but it felt right. We may not have money, but we have our dignity and our integrity, and we're fearless. If an acquisition is the right move for them, we'll lay our cards on the table and they can play their hand. And if it's not, then let's tip our hats and mosey out of town.
Like Popeye said: "I y'am what I y'am." Unfortunately, sometimes I feel more like his buddy Wimpy, continually trying to buy hamburgers on credit.
No comments:
Post a Comment