Alignment Before Valuation
Price is the loudest part of a negotiation and rarely the most important. A financing sets the terms of a relationship that will outlast the memory of its valuation.
Before the number, settle the horizon. How long does each side expect the journey to take, what should the next round look like, and what would both parties call a good outcome?
Misalignment discovered at a board table costs far more than a turn of price conceded at the term sheet.
When the answers agree, the valuation conversation becomes shorter, because both sides are pricing the same plan.