In this episode of Max Value, I sit down with Ted Israel. He's the founder and now-retired partner of Israel Fry Group. Ted spent over 30 years doing business valuation work. He handled estate and gift tax cases. He worked on mergers and deals. He also handled family law disputes. We talk about why many owners don't need a formal valuation at all. A simpler ”sensitivity analysis” can often answer the real question instead. We also cover the habits that quietly hurt value at the table. Things like owner perks in the books. Messy bookkeeping. Personal costs mixed into company numbers. These all raise a buyer's sense of risk. Then we go deep on the hardest part of any valuation: company specific risk. Ted explains why old valuation models built for public firms were never made for small private ones. He also shares why he walked away from a busy practice. Plus, a courtroom story that still follows him. If you're an owner or advisor who thinks about value, risk, or your future exit, this one is for you.