What It Takes to Sell Your Business
Six steps to selling and retiring
BY Brett Sargent
SHUTTERSTOCK ILLUSTRATION
As a business owner , you work hard , worry endlessly , and toil well beyond normal working hours to make your business as successful as possible . You are not alone ; all business owners seem to follow the same path . I have sold many companies , coached even more of them , and worked with numerous clients on exit planning and exit strategies for their businesses . There is a pattern that Main Street businesses and lower mid-market businesses have when they sell and exit their business successfully . I wanted to share this model and advice with you .
1 . Know your numbers First , as a business owner you must have a command of your numbers . Understanding your income statements , balance sheets , cash flow statements and tax returns is extremely important so that you can see things in your business and correct them before they go off the road into a ditch . Don ’ t run from the numbers , embrace them and make them part of your business life . Most business owners don ’ t understand what Seller ’ s Discretionary Earnings or Adjusted EBITDA ( earnings before interest , taxes , depreciation , and amortization ) are . If you are reading this and don ’ t know what they are , you have some homework to do . This is how your business will be valued .
2 . Separate your identity from your business ’ s Second , don ’ t make the business all about you . Many business owners thrive on being the main point of contact , the sole person responsible for all sales and decisions . You are not going with the sale of your business .
22 comstocksmag . com | August 2022