Eli Chmouni Of Arizona State University On What To Do After You Sold Your Business
An interview with Eden Gold
Slow down and reflect on the journey — the good, bad and ugly.
Selling your business is a major transaction, and a huge step in a new direction. It is easy to feel unmoored and directionless, and a significant number of entrepreneurs who sell their businesses do not have a plan for the future. What are the steps that someone should take after selling their business? As a part of this interview series, we had the pleasure to interview Eli Chmouni.
Eli Chmouni is an assistant teaching professor at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. Chumouni teaches entrepreneurship courses at ASU and for the Digital Audience program through ASU Online, educating students on identifying market opportunities and building and monetizing their businesses. He is a serial entrepreneur, mentoring more than 500 startups and founders on ideation, branding, customer profiles and scaling, and he has launched five media technology businesses with two exits.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share the “backstory” behind what brought you to this particular career path?
I came to the U.S. in 2006 when I was 19 years old, seeking a degree in engineering at Arizona State University. After earning a bachelor’s and master’s degree in mechanical engineering I thought my only career path was getting a 9–5 job and going up the corporate ladder to become VP of engineering and perhaps a CTO. After having an engineering job for four months, I hated it! I remember coming home and crying, wondering if the rest of my life I would be sitting in front of a computer doing CAD projects. So I quit, not having a backup job or anything else lined up. I just knew that job was not it.
I always loved the media space — anything from content creation to film production and videos. I was the nerd who could remember the different ads on different billboards, and I was super interested in how the media created amazing stories and influenced people. So, having only known engineering and science for the past six years of my academic career, I did not know where to even start.
I remember searching, “How to make money with videos?” and one of the results was a video competition hosted by GE to submit a video about the green initiatives in your state and win $5,000. So I tried that. Having less than $100 in my bank account, I remember borrowing a camera from BestBuy, filming a video and submitting it. Guess what, out of all the odds, I won. After that, I started looking for more competitions and submitting more videos and continued to win.
Six months later, I saw an ad on the ASU campus about an incubator program called Edson. “Want to launch your business? Apply and get $20,000.” So I did, and although I did not get the $20,000, I received $2,000, but the next year of my life was transformational. I was surrounded by many mentors and executives who trained me and coached me to be the CEO I am today. I transferred my media production hobby to a full media agency, Blue Dream, making six figures in eight months. The revenue from that business and my understanding of engineering and media allowed me to build multiple businesses. After that, two were acquired, one has failed gloriously, and I still currently run two: Spotlight and Neon.
My passion for nurturing startups kept me at ASU, where I teach entrepreneurship courses to students university-wide and online — I’m able to use my real-time experience to nurture students along their own entrepreneurship journeys.
Let’s move onto the main topic of our discussion. Do you feel like you were adequately prepared for the next stage after selling your business?
When you sell your business, you lose a part of your identity. You can no longer call the shots, and your role in the growth and operations of the business completely shifts almost overnight. One of the businesses I sold was a direct asset sale of the technology; the other was an acquisition, where I was expected to stay with the new company for one year. In both situations, you feel a sense of loss as to what is next. What should I do with my free time? What is my next purpose? Do I get another job or start another business? Should I go back to school and upskill?
In the majority of these situations, I learned you need to give your brain the space to think. Going from working 20 hours a day to nothing is a big shift. So allow your brain to breathe, take a step back, go to your notebook filled with ideas and identify additional opportunities for the next adventure.
What challenges did you face in transitioning from being a business owner to exploring new opportunities?
As a business owner you wear multiple hats, if not all the hats, at times. So, if you are looking for a job after you sell your business, there is a sense of confusion as to what your role is and what job you should apply for. If you decide to start another business, there is an open field of opportunities and landmines, and you always have to weigh the risk vs reward.
In my case, after I sold the business, I did some consulting to clear my mind. As a consultant, you can evaluate problems externally, and it allows you to be in problem-solving mode, which is the core feature of an entrepreneur trying to identify their next business opportunity.
How did selling your business impact your personal identity and sense of purpose?
Selling my first business was exciting, and I proved to myself that I could build something of value that someone else wanted to acquire. Selling the second business was harder because I was retained on the new team for one year, and the transition from the CEO role to the employee role was hard to adjust to.
How have you navigated the financial aspects of life post-sale, and what strategies have you implemented for long-term wealth management?
Regardless of the exit, I always ensure the sale will financially position me and my team in a better spot. I used some of the funds to diversify my investments with real estate and medical funds which allowed me to retain some passive income and stability as I explored new opportunities. Entrepreneurs should be strategic about reinvesting their wins in opportunities that will give them an edge, especially when planning a follow-up business. Don’t put it all back on the table.
What has been the most surprising aspect of life after selling your business, and how have you adapted to it?
Because I have been very strategic about how I’ve reinvested after selling my businesses and investing in future ventures, honestly, there have been no major changes in my personal life. I am a super minimalist. I did not care about stuff, clothes or cars. I kept driving my beat-up 2006 Toyota Corolla with 215,000 miles on it, and life continued as normal. I was able to set my mother up for early retirement and a house, which was very rewarding.
How do you stay motivated and engaged in new ventures or personal interests after the sale?
- Mentor Others. Helping others to start and grow a business based on the experience I have gathered is very rewarding and exciting and drives my passion to launch another business.
- Attend Entrepreneurial Groups. Entrepreneurs are weird, and your friends will not understand why you do the things you do, so surround yourself with your tribe of other entrepreneurs who are passionate about starting new concepts and excited to make a change.
How did you prepare mentally and emotionally for life after selling your business, and what advice would you give to others?
3 Pieces of Advice:
- As Elsa from “Frozen” said, “Let it go!” It is no longer your business, and you need to learn to let it go. It has new parents now.
- Celebrate your team. No one wins and gets their business to the point of a sale without a strong team. So celebrate them, financially and emotionally. Most likely, these are the people you will tap on the shoulder when launching your next business.
- Stay Humble and Active. Sure, you can celebrate, travel, maybe even sleep in… but keep going and start working on your next adventure.
What role has your network played in helping you find new opportunities or passions post-sale?
My network and mentors have been key to everything I have done up to this point and the CEO I turned out to be. Keep your mentors close, check in with them regularly, ask them to challenge you and drop your ego at the door. Get friendly with other entrepreneurs and be vulnerable and share your ideas.
How do you define success now, and how has that definition evolved since selling your business?
It’s about creating a product or service that people need and choose vs. the current status quo.
Success is the ability to work with an amazing team to build that product and getting to do it all over again!
What are your “5 Things You Should Do After Selling Your Business”?
- Slow down and reflect on the journey — the good, bad and ugly.
- Celebrate the team and mentors that helped you along the way.
- Think about your financial state and where you would like to be.
- Do whatever you couldn’t do while you had your business.
- Start another one 🙂.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
Steve Harvey: “Rich people don’t sleep 8 hours a day.”
It is not just about being rich. It is about winning and dominating a category.
I have been known to rarely sleep or get about 4 hours a night. Living in Phoenix, I wake up every day at 3 A.M. to begin my day because that is already 6 A.M. on the East Coast. I have competitors on the East Coast, and I cannot give them the advantage of being up before me, going after customers I want while I am sleeping. Building and growing a business is war, and as CEO, you need to position yourself and your team to win, regardless of the rules, systems or status quo.
We are blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them :-)
Kevin O’Leary. He is tough, hungry to win and successful in multiple industries. Also, Mark Zuckerberg. His ability to win the constant battles against him and his company while maintaining innovation and adjusted business models is mesmerizing to watch.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
I am on LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/in/elichmouni/.
Thank you so much for these insights! This was so inspiring!
About The Interviewer: Eden Gold, is a youth speaker, keynote speaker, founder of the online program Life After High School, and host of the Real Life Adulting Podcast. Being America’s rising force for positive change, Eden is a catalyst for change in shaping the future of education. With a lifelong mission of impacting the lives of 1 billion young adults, Eden serves as a practical guide, aiding young adults in honing their self-confidence, challenging societal conventions, and crafting a strategic roadmap towards the fulfilling lives they envision.
Do you need a dynamic speaker, or want to learn more about Eden’s programs? Click here: https://bit.ly/EdenGold
