The Three Acts of Life
Why Your Business Transition Will Take Longer Than You Think
Last month, I found myself in tears watching a performance of La Traviata. Not because of Violetta's tragic ending—though Verdi's masterpiece never fails to move—but because of a sudden, overwhelming recognition of my own life's journey mapped perfectly onto those three acts.
Act I: Violetta's world of pleasure, freedom, and living for the moment.
Act II: Love, sacrifice, and the complex building of something meaningful.
Act III: Redemption, legacy, and the courage to choose what matters most.
Between each act, the curtain falls for intermissions—those messy, transformative periods when all the real work happens behind the scenes, hidden from the audience.
Sitting in that darkened theater, I realized I'm currently six years into the intermission between my own Act II and Act III. And if the pattern holds true—as it did at Amazon, where I learned that major business transformations require a seven-year commitment—I have about one more year of behind-the-curtain work before my entrepreneurial Act III is fully realized.
This isn't just a personal revelation. It's exactly the timeline challenge every business owner faces when they start thinking about succession planning, though most don't realize it yet.
My Three Acts: A Story of Unplanned Transitions
Act I began in Western Colorado as the daughter of a serial entrepreneur. Following my father's family tradition, I joined the Navy straight out of high school, then worked my way through college and became the first in my family to earn a master's degree. This was my formative period—working full time, going to school at night, becoming my own person spiritually and professionally.
The First Intermission started in my late twenties. Behind the curtain, everything was shifting. I was working in commercial construction, finishing my MBA, clarifying my spiritual beliefs, and making a crucial decision: I wanted to be part of the tech industry and innovative organizations. This transition took about seven years—messy, uncertain years where I was building the foundation for what came next.
Act II was the intentional building period. I achieved my goal of working in tech, spent years at companies like Amazon, lived in San Francisco (my dream city since age twelve), built a life with my soulmate Hieu, and experienced tremendous growth as a leader. This was my career-building, life-building act.
The Second Intermission—my current transition—began six years ago with a decision that didn't feel like the start of a major life change at all. Hieu and I sold our San Francisco house and bought one in Hickory, North Carolina, so we could move my parents in and care for them.
I had no idea this practical decision was actually the curtain falling on the most transformative intermission of my life.
Behind the Curtain: The Messy Reality of Transformation
What followed was a period that people would say “how are you handling all this?”. Behind the curtain of this seemingly simple "moving to care for parents" decision, everything unraveled and rebuilt itself:
The COVID pandemic hit. My father passed away. Our two beloved dogs—our San Francisco babies—died. My mother had two major surgeries. I got fired for the first time in my life from a start-up because I refused to be a “yes man.” Hieu underwent open heart surgery and a triple bypass. And somewhere in the middle of all this chaos, I decided to follow my dream of starting my own business.
These weren't separate events; they were all part of one massive intermission—the behind-the-curtain transformation required to move from Act II (successful corporate leader) to Act III (entrepreneur dedicated to cultivating courageous, empathetic, and effective leaders).
Now, six years in, I can see the final piece of this transition clearly. We're downsizing our home to create a space where Hieu, my mom, and I can all focus on our highest life priorities. Using the decision-making framework I learned at Amazon—where everything starts with establishing guiding principles before diving into details—I asked each family member to identify their top three priorities.
My priorities are:
My total health and wellbeing
My loved ones (in priority order)
Fulfillment of my life's purpose and mission: "Cultivate more courageous, empathetic, and effective leaders in the world"
Our family guiding principles for this final transition became:
Health First: Decisions must protect and enhance everyone's wellbeing
Family as Foundation: Strengthen relationships while respecting individual growth
Simplify for Freedom: Reduce complexity to focus on what matters most
Sustainable Growth: Support both my entrepreneurial mission and Hieu's craftsmanship pursuits
Once this downsizing is complete—right around the seven-year mark—I'll have fully transitioned into my entrepreneurial Act III.
The Amazon Lesson: Why Seven Years Isn't Arbitrary
This seven-year pattern isn't coincidence. At Amazon, I learned that when the company decided to invest in any new business area, they committed to a full seven years. Not seven years to scale—seven years to prove the business model before scaling.
I was part of Amazon Lab126, the unit responsible for consumer electronics like the Kindle and Echo. When I joined, they had just proven their first Kindle Paperwhite and were beginning to scale operations. That proving period? Five to six years of behind-the-curtain development, testing, iterating, and building the systems required for eventual success.
Amazon understood what most entrepreneurs don't: meaningful transformation requires sustained commitment over years, not quick fixes or just following the crowd. The real work happens during long intermissions when nobody sees what you're building.
Your Business Opera: Which Act Are You In?
Every business owner I meet is living somewhere in their own three-act story, though most haven't recognized the pattern yet. And here's what's critical to understand: if you're in your fifties or thinking about succession planning, you're likely approaching your own Second Intermission—that messy, behind-the-curtain period between your building years and your legacy act.
Act I Business Owners are in startup mode, often necessity entrepreneurs who started businesses to support their families. Like my father, who launched his automotive repair business after being fired, they're focused on survival and early growth.
Act II Business Owners are in the intentional building period. They have established businesses, teams, and hopefully systems. They've moved beyond survival to creating something successful.
The Second Intermission is where succession planning actually happens—but most business owners don't realize they're entering a 3-10 year transformation period. They think succession planning means making a quick decision about who takes over or whether to sell.
They are afraid to talk about it because their customers and employees will abandon them and the business. They don't understand they're about to enter their most complex intermission yet.
Recent Gallup research reveals the scope of this misunderstanding: roughly half of U.S. business owners either plan to simply close their businesses or have no plan at all. Twenty-two percent plan to just shut their doors when they're done, and thirty-three percent have no plan or are unsure about their future.
This is like deciding to skip the intermission and go straight from Act II to closing night. It doesn't work in opera, and it definitely doesn't work in business.
The Real Behind-the-Curtain Work
During your Second Intermission—your succession planning period—here's what's actually happening behind the curtain:
Personal transformation: Just like my journey from corporate leader to entrepreneur, you're evolving from hands-on operator to strategic architect. This requires developing new skills, new perspectives, and often new priorities.
Business evolution: Your company must transform from something that depends on you to something that can thrive without you. This means building systems, developing leaders, and creating value that extends beyond your personal involvement.
Relationship restructuring: Your role with employees, customers, family, and advisors all shift during this period. These changes are often emotional and complex, requiring careful navigation.
Financial repositioning: Whether you're selling, transferring, or maintaining ownership while stepping back, the financial structures of your business and personal life must be redesigned.
Legacy clarification: What do you want your business to become after you transition? How do you want to be remembered? What impact do you want to continue having?
This isn't a one-year project. Like Amazon's seven-year commitment to proving new business models, or my own seven-year personal transition, this intermission requires sustained commitment and patience with the process.
The Choice: Duct Tape or Strategic Design?
Too many business owners approach this transition with what I call "duct tape and WD-40" thinking—quick fixes to keep things running without considering long-term value creation. They plan to just shut down when they're done, not realizing they're throwing away years of built value and leaving their teams, customers, and families vulnerable.
But there's another path. You can approach your Second Intermission with the same strategic thinking that built your successful Act II business. You can invest in the behind-the-curtain work that transforms your company from a job you'll eventually leave to a legacy that creates lasting value.
The choice isn't just about money—it's about the story you want your business to tell after your final curtain call.
Your Next Scene
If you're reading this and recognizing yourself in any part of this story, you're probably closer to your own Second Intermission than you realize. The question isn't whether you'll face this transition—you will. The question is whether you'll enter it with intention or stumble through it hoping for the best.
At Amazon, we knew that major business transformations require years of commitment. My personal journey has taught me that life transitions follow the same pattern. And my work with business owners has shown me that succession planning—done right—is actually Act III design.
Your business could be worth much more than you think. Your team deserves the security of thoughtful planning. And you've earned the right to compose an Act III that honors everything you've built while creating space for what comes next.
If you're approaching your own Second Intermission, the question is: are you ready for the behind-the-curtain work that will make your Act III extraordinary?
Ready to explore which act you're in and what your intermission might look like?
Book a strategy session with me to discuss where you are in your business journey and whether a Fit Study could help you understand your business's true value potential. Because the best succession plans—like the best operas—begin with understanding the story you want to tell.
About the Author
Tina Dao is founder and principal of Liberated Leaders, she partners with business owners and decision-makers to ease the burden of company leadership and embrace the discipline needed to create long-term value. With COO and fractional COO experience, Tina has a wealth of knowledge in technology, operations, strategy, and leadership development. She is a trusted advisor to multiple CEOs, helping them navigate challenges, optimize their businesses, and achieve sustainable growth. Find out more about Tina on our About page.
Note: This article was 85% human generated and 15% machine (AI) generated.
Citations:
Gallup Pathways to Wealth Survey, conducted fall 2024 with support from JPMorganChase and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation