perator vs. owner vs. investor.

These are all flavors along the spectrum of small business entrepreneurship.

And today's guest falls squarely on the operator end of that spectrum.

Himmat Singh always knew he wanted to operate a business, and not because he was attracted to the financial rewards.

In fact it wasn't until later in his career that he realized how lucrative the role of operator could be when paired with equity ownership.

Himmat just simply likes operations — the action, the leadership.

So in addition to being a good story of acquisition entrepreneurship, today's interview also takes you inside the head of an operator's operator.

‍And it's worth asking whether you recognize yourself there. If not, hard-core operations may not be for you.

Himmat is concerned that overpromises of passive ownership have accompanied the rise in ETA.

Many people might be drawn to small business ownership without understanding its true nature.

‍Reminds me of what you heard search investor Ned Tomasevic say in his interview last week:

That he sees many would-be searchers interested in search not because they actually want to operate a business, but instead because it's a potential stepping stone to becoming an investor. Not the best reason to do a search fund.

Long-time listeners of Acquiring Minds will have variations on the theme many times, but it never gets old:

Really understand what you're signing up for in small business acquisition, and be sure you want it.

Here is born-operator Himmat Singh, owner of EPI-Colorspace.