Every time I hear someone say, “This company is worth 15X EBITDA,” a little part of me dies. Really? You’re telling me a business built on decades of sweat, sleepless nights, and promoter madness is worth the same as a neat Excel formula?
That’s not valuation. That’s numerology.
Valuation isn’t arithmetic. It’s alchemy.
Numbers matter, but numbers lie.
And if you only look at revenue, profit, and cash flows, you’re not valuing a company.
You’re valuing a spreadsheet.
Beyond the Balance Sheet
A company is more than its ledger.
True value hides in places your auditor won’t audit:
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Market Position: Category creator or commodity player?
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Customers: Are they evangelists or hostages waiting for a cheaper option?
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Brand Equity: Logos don’t count. Mindshare does. A brand that shapes choices is priceless.
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Goodwill: The invisible trust currency with regulators, partners, and society.
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Distribution Muscle: Can you reach every corner, or are you still stuck in a metro bubble?
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Team Competence: Mediocre people drain value; A-players multiply it.
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Governance & Compliance: One scandal can turn unicorns into pumpkins.
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Innovation Pipeline: What’s next? Because today’s moat is tomorrow’s puddle.
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Adaptability: Do you pivot, or do you fossilize?
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Culture: Not the posters on walls, but the energy that keeps talent from fleeing.
The Promoter’s Mirror Test
Promoters love to hear rosy valuations from advisors. But here’s the uncomfortable question: “Is this the real value of my company, or just financial cosmetics?”
True leaders ask:
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What can we do to increase the value beyond the balance sheet?
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Can incremental efforts in branding, governance, or customer experience compound into exponential valuation growth?
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And most importantly: Am I building for the story investors buy… or for the substance that endures?
Because here’s the harsh truth:
Value unlocking doesn’t happen every year.
For new-age companies, it takes a decade.
For traditional ones, often 20+ years.
Which means you won’t get many chances to press the “valuation jackpot” button. When it comes, you’d better make it count.
The Myth of the Spreadsheet Oracle
Bankers and analysts worship DCFs and multiples.
Useful, yes. Complete, never.
Markets don’t buy digits; they buy belief.
That’s why companies with identical numbers get wildly different valuations.
It’s not the math. It’s the narrative.
Valuation is not the price of what you’ve built.
It’s the premium the world places on believing in your future.
So the next time you sit with your advisors, don’t just ask, “What’s my company worth?”
Ask, “What will it take for the world to believe it’s worth 10X more?”
Because spreadsheets don’t create value.
Stories, strategy, and sweat do.