--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Shortly before we closed the deal, Randy…" description: "\"“Shortly before we closed the deal, Randy Michaels and Terry Jacobs, who were running Jacor, came to me to finance the acquisition of a Denver station...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/136/sam-zell-32783_books_shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy_17938.jpg" --- # Shortly before we closed the deal, Randy Michaels and… ![“Shortly before we closed the deal, Randy Michaels and Terry Jacobs, who were running Jacor, came to me to finance the acquisition of a Denver station. Jacor already owned one of the other FM stations in Denver, and this one was losing money and available cheap. They showed up in Chicago carrying a…” quote by Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/136/sam-zell-32783_books_shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy_17938.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/136/sam-zell-32783_books_shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy_17938.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/136/sam-zell-32783_books_shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy_17938.jpg) > ““Shortly before we closed the deal, Randy Michaels and Terry Jacobs, who were running Jacor, came to me to finance the acquisition of a Denver station. Jacor already owned one of the other FM stations in Denver, and this one was losing money and available cheap. They showed up in Chicago carrying a thick book of details, prepared to make their pitch. “This is a great deal,” Randy assured me. He thumped the book on the table, ready to take me through it. “Wait a minute,” I said. “Do you understand the scope of the deal—why we should buy it?” “Yes,” he replied. “All the details are right here in this book.” He added that he and Terry had worked feverishly night and day to prepare it. I picked up the book and tossed it into a corner of my office, where it landed with a thud. Randy and Terry stared at me wide-eyed. “If you really understand it, you don’t need a book,” I said. “You could put it on a single piece of paper.” They looked uncertain. “I assume this says things are going to be great, right?” They nodded. “What happens if you’re wrong? How do I get out of the room?” “What do you mean?” Randy asked. “How bad can it get?” “Well,” he said, “it’s pretty bad now, and if we fail to fix it you could lose some operating capital. But I don’t see a station in Denver ever being worth less than $4 million. I mean, the building, the transmitter—the physical assets alone are worth close to that.” “Okay, great. How good could it get?” The answer, in short, was very good. So I said, “Go do it.”” [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Understanding a deal requires grasping its core risks and upside, not just data sheets; true insight is distilled, not overloaded. **In simple terms:** Distill insight, avoid over‑detail. Key Takeaway Clarity beats volume. Themes decision‑making risk assessment simplicity leadership communication Mood analytical cautious confident Type advice anecdote When to use this quote - evaluating acquisitions - pitching investors - boardroom negotiations - strategic planning - risk management Key Concepts due diligence valuation negotiation strategic thinking Practical Applications - executive decision‑making - investment appraisal Questions to Reflect On - What essential facts would fit on one page? - How does simplicity affect confidence in a deal? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acquisition Denver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acquisition-denver-387940/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Deal Buy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deal-buy-387942/) [Deal Randy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deal-randy-387941/) [Jacor Came](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jacor-came-387943/) [Jacor Owned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jacor-owned-387939/) [Losing money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/losing-money/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Negotiation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/negotiation/) ## Related quotes > [Facebook's the real deal. Nobody can buy Facebook now. Everybody has taken an angle at it. But Facebook may be the place that organizes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-diller/facebook-s-the-real-deal-nobody-can-buy-facebook-now-everybody-has/) [Barry Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-diller/) > [“I want to create a 3-4 deal—buy three for the price of four. Offer valid for any product but love, which is one for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-want-to-create-a-3-4-deal-buy-three-for-the-price-of-four-offer/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [The idea of a company that's earning money, not losing money, that's not, let's say 'industrially endangered,' to have just cutbacks so they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-diller/the-idea-of-a-company-that-s-earning-money-not-losing-money-that-s/) [Barry Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-diller/) > [“Colonel Cargill, General Peckem’s troubleshooter, was a forceful, ruddy man. Before the war he had been an alert, hard-hitting, aggressive marketing executive. He was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/colonel-cargill-general-peckem-s-troubleshooter-was-a-forceful-ruddy/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [I'd say it's that most people think that very wealthy people take huge risks and that's why they have huge rewards. But the very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/i-d-say-it-s-that-most-people-think-that-very-wealthy-people-take/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [Contrary to popular belief, you don't make money as an actor in the beginning. Your publicist might cost $5000 a month, so you're losing money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-silvers/contrary-to-popular-belief-you-don-t-make-money-as-an-actor-in-the/) [Diana Silvers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-silvers/) > [The fact that I win and lose money all the time helps desensitize me, so I can write down $60,000 as the Final Jeopardy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-holzhauer/the-fact-that-i-win-and-lose-money-all-the-time-helps-desensitize-me/) [James Holzhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-holzhauer/) > [It's hard for me to worry about the studios losing money. I'm not very sympathetic to their money problems, because they certainly haven't been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-gilliam/it-s-hard-for-me-to-worry-about-the-studios-losing-money-i-m-not-very/) [Terry Gilliam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-gilliam/) > [Ts unfortunate that in England we heard that players werent getting paid for taking time off and going to the World Cup. They have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-solo/ts-unfortunate-that-in-england-we-heard-that-players-werent-getting/) [Hope Solo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-solo/) > [Startups should be - if you graph their financial performance, it should be what's called a J curve. You start out at zero. you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chamath-palihapitiya/startups-should-be-if-you-graph-their-financial-performance-it-should/) [Chamath Palihapitiya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chamath-palihapitiya/) > [A club like ours loses £8-10m every year to be competitive, and nobody wants to keep a business that is losing money every year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-radrizzani/a-club-like-ours-loses-8-10m-every-year-to-be-competitive-and-nobody/) [Andrea Radrizzani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-radrizzani/) > [There's no enjoyment to losing money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-allen/there-s-no-enjoyment-to-losing-money/) [Paul Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-allen/) > [Indeed, being a beginner is very difficult right now. Book publishers are in a crisis, sales are dwindling, and publishing houses are losing money,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-lukyanenko/indeed-being-a-beginner-is-very-difficult-right-now-book-publishers/) [Sergei Lukyanenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-lukyanenko/) > [And I have to tell you, as tough as farming is, the idea of farming when you’re losing money year after year... that’s not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-i-have-to-tell-you-as-tough-as-farming-is-the-idea-of-farming/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you don't have a deal, you wind up losing money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-zheng-wu/if-you-don-t-have-a-deal-you-wind-up-losing-money/) [Bruno Zheng Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-zheng-wu/) ## More by Sam Zell > [My single biggest financial concern is the loss of the dollar as the reserve currency. I can't imagine anything more disastrous to our country.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/my-single-biggest-financial-concern-is-the-loss-of-the-dollar-as-the/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [The reality is that I need to be challenged and interested, as long as the risk and reward is in line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/the-reality-is-that-i-need-to-be-challenged-and-interested-as-long-as/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [The question is not do you take money out of stocks and put it into real estate, or the reverse. There's so much money…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/the-question-is-not-do-you-take-money-out-of-stocks-and-put-it-into/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [Just by being private, the culture will change. We won't be forced to make decisions that are 90 days in relevance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/just-by-being-private-the-culture-will-change-we-won-t-be-forced-to/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [I've always been called a professional opportunist, and in the future I'm open to anything. We've spent a lot of time offshore, looking at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/i-ve-always-been-called-a-professional-opportunist-and-in-the-future/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [Interest rates are going to go up because employment is going to go up. If employment goes up, then our apartments get filled. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/interest-rates-are-going-to-go-up-because-employment-is-going-to-go/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [In my case, if one out of five opportunities is interesting enough to work on, maybe one in five of those ends up being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/in-my-case-if-one-out-of-five-opportunities-is-interesting-enough-to/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [When you got a demand issue it's hard to imagine the stock market at an all-time high.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/when-you-got-a-demand-issue-it-s-hard-to-imagine-the-stock-market-at/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [When all is said and done, what must be remembered is a newspaper is a business. It used to be a fabulous business that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/when-all-is-said-and-done-what-must-be-remembered-is-a-newspaper-is-a/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [Everyone likes pussy. It's un-American not to like pussy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/everyone-likes-pussy-it-s-un-american-not-to-like-pussy/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [If you could find a major city that actually had a functioning, good public school system, you should buy all the real estate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/if-you-could-find-a-major-city-that-actually-had-a-functioning-good/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [“Risk is the ultimate differentiator. I have always had a deep and complex relationship with it. I am not a reckless person, but taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/risk-is-the-ultimate-differentiator-i-have-always-had-a-deep-and/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [The single biggest issue that I'm very sensitive to is inflation. I'm very concerned that this extended period where the interest rates were quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/the-single-biggest-issue-that-i-m-very-sensitive-to-is-inflation-i-m/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [I can’t imagine anything being more disastrous to our country than if the dollar lost its reserve-currency status.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/i-can-t-imagine-anything-being-more-disastrous-to-our-country-than-if/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) [Explore all 15 Sam Zell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Shortly before we closed the deal, Randy Michaels and Terry Jacobs, who were running Jacor, came to me to finance the acquisition of a Denver station. Jacor already owned one of the other FM stations in Denver, and this one was losing money and available cheap. They showed up in Chicago carrying a thick book of details, prepared to make their pitch. “This is a great deal,” Randy assured me. He thumped the book on the table, ready to take me through it. “Wait a minute,” I said. “Do you understand the scope of the deal—why we should buy it?” “Yes,” he replied. “All the details are right here in this book.” He added that he and Terry had worked feverishly night and day to prepare it. I picked up the book and tossed it into a corner of my office, where it landed with a thud. Randy and Terry stared at me wide-eyed. “If you really understand it, you don’t need a book,” I said. “You could put it on a single piece of paper.” They looked uncertain. “I assume this says things are going to be great, right?” They nodded. “What happens if you’re wrong? How do I get out of the room?” “What do you mean?” Randy asked. “How bad can it get?” “Well,” he said, “it’s pretty bad now, and if we fail to fix it you could lose some operating capital. But I don’t see a station in Denver ever being worth less than $4 million. I mean, the building, the transmitter—the physical assets alone are worth close to that.” “Okay, great. How good could it get?” The answer, in short, was very good. So I said, “Go do it.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sam Zell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy-michaels-and-terry-jacobs-who/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy-michaels-and-terry-jacobs-who/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/136/sam-zell-32783_books_shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy_17938.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/136/sam-zell-32783_books_shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy_17938.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/136/sam-zell-32783_books_shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy_17938.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Shortly before we closed the deal, Randy Michaels and Terry Jacobs, who were running Jacor, came to me to…” — Sam Zell", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Sam Zell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Shortly before we closed the deal,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy-michaels-and-terry-jacobs-who/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/shortly-before-we-closed-the-deal-randy-michaels-and-terry-jacobs-who/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```