Time to Think and to Plan

As a business owner you probably have much of your net worth tied up in your company. The trick is turning that stock into cash when it is time to retire. However, the BIG question is “when to retire and how?”

Business owners begin thinking about exit planning and succession strategies when they start feeling that they want to do something besides go to work everyday. This could be because they would prefer to be doing something else, or they simply no longer get the same kick out of doing what they do. The “fire in their belly” is not burning as it once did.

Another motivator can be the nice feeling of approaching financial independence by selling the business (“cashing in”) or at least part of it (“taking money off the table”). When these two thoughts grow in intensity and/or frequency, business owners may start leaning towards exiting the business.

In other cases, exiting can be a goal for which the owner has worked long and hard, rather than just the termination of a cycle. When you develop your exit strategy, you can preserve and control your own entrepreneurial destiny. Whether it is a goal or a final point of a “life-dream”, do what is right for you and plan, plan, plan.

An exit plan must be in place for owners to be able to leave the business maximizing benefits. Exit planning is the tool that would make it possible for you to leave the business on your terms and schedule.