The start-up of a business is often all-consuming for a period of time – the owner of a new business is focusing on name and brand recognition and building a client base. Day-to-day demands leave very little time or energy for anything else. And that is what is required initially.
However, it is risky to ignore a long-term vision for your business. As with all our endeavors, we must set goals and plans that aim for our vision. Otherwise, when the time comes to end your association with the business you have created, you may not realize its full value without a strategy to exit it.
Certainly you will have invested much time, money and effort in creating a lucrative business and it would be unfortunate to simply close the doors. What, then, will your strategy be?
Think in terms of having your business outlive you. Because you will no longer be the principal involved in the everyday operations does not mean you should completely stop doing business. Develop a plan to either turn over your business to a key employee to continue it in your retirement, or a plan to sell the assets you have created. An established business with brand recognition already built and an excellent reputation for client service has a great value.
Although you may still be in the building stages of your business, now is the time to begin to develop your vision of what your business will ultimately be and build the value it will possess. In order to avoid losses when you leave the business, begin to work toward your final goal contained in your exit strategy. Begin your assessment of how to obtain its full value even though you retire or leave it.
When you have invested so much of yourself in creating your business, why would you simply give up all its value by closing it and walking away? Develop your exit strategy early enough to have your business outlive you, and the rewards could be greater than you ever imagined.
If you don’t know where to begin in developing your strategy, or just don’t have time to do the very important task of putting it in place, contact Kim Hughes for a consultation. We can help devise a plan that is just right, and at no burden to you.
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