Distressed situations compress optionality. The founders and boards that recover value are those who diagnose early, communicate with lenders and stakeholders before default theatre, and choose a path with clear economics.
Resolution is rarely a single instrument. It is a package — restructuring, fresh capital, asset solutions, or a controlled sale — sequenced so that going-concern value isn't destroyed by process delays.
Quiet, early intervention compounds. Late heroics usually don't.