Stage 1 of 9

Deciding to sell

Almost nobody decides to sell a company in a single moment. The thought arrives, gets pushed away, and returns during a bad week.

The reasons behind the thought

Owners describe the same handful of reasons. The work has stopped being interesting. The next step needs money or skills that are not there. A health matter, a partner, a child, a move. An offer arrived unexpectedly. Or simply that ten years is a long time.

Each of those points to a different answer. Boredom can be solved by hiring a manager. A capital constraint can be solved by financing. Only some of the reasons actually lead to a sale, and separating them early prevents a process started for the wrong one.

The test that helps

A useful exercise: write down what the ideal outcome looks like eighteen months from now, without using the word sell. If that description involves running the company at all, the decision is probably not to sell but to change how it is run.

Timing against readiness

The moment a company is easiest to sell is rarely the moment its owner most wants to. Businesses sell well when results are stable and the owner is not in a hurry. They sell poorly when a deadline is visible from the other side of the table.

Talking to someone

The decision is usually taken alone for far too long. A conversation with an adviser, an accountant or another owner who has been through it changes little about the facts and a great deal about the clarity.

A decision taken quietly over a year is worth more than a decision taken quickly in a bad month.