Is Running a Search Fund Fulfilling?

February 10, 2025

by a searcher from INSEAD in 77300 Fontainebleau, France

For those who have gone through or are going through the search fund journey. Do you find it genuinely fulfilling?

I understand the financial upside, the challenge of operating a business, and the appeal of being your own boss. But beyond the rational benefits. Is it fulfilling for you or does it feel just like any other job?

I’d appreciate honest, unfiltered perspectives. I am still on the fence about all this. Thanks in advance!

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Reply by a searcher
from INSEAD in Oakland, CA, USA

Searching for a business is hard: the work can be repetitive, it can feel like you're getting doors slammed in your face, and since your success measure is closing on an acquisition, the process can feel long and thankless. That said, searching for a business is also a lot of fun: constantly learning new industries and models, blend of sales-type work (engaging with brokers & owners, building deal flow) and deep analysis (financial analysis, industry analysis), thinking through how a potential acquisition might work (structure, logistics, and operations). On the worst days it feels like you're unemployed clicking around the internet, on the best days it can feel like you're on day 1 of Berkshire Hathaway. Managing the highs and lows is critical to your ability to continue to execute every day. As others have pointed out, the search isn't the end goal, so the bigger question is will you find it fulfilling to be the owner/operator of the business that you acquire. Will you want to wake up and work on that challenge every day?

Reply by a searcher
from Baylor University in Chicago, IL, USA

Personally in my experience, that is not the right question to be asking yourself if you are trying to decide on this journey. Searching is tough, and at times can feel like you are not growing at all because we equate success with closing on a deal, I have been searching for 2 years myself and have gone under LOI twice, two failed closed deals, and about $60k wasted on deal fees between the two. Searching in my experience has been brutal. Yet I will continue to search until I close on a deal, because of what is driving me to close. My driver is the freedom of being an entrepreneur, and investing in a business and its people where I have better control over the outcomes. There are MANY ways to accomplish this, not just through searching. The question you want to ask yourself is which way suits me best? For me, I am better at building something that is already going, not starting from 0-1. I've done it before, and I would absolutely prefer the searcher route as difficult as it is.

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