You've spent years building your business. Long hours, personal sacrifices, financial risks and more sleepless nights than you'd care to remember.
But have you given any thought to how you'll eventually leave it? And when?
Or are you assuming you'll work that out when the time comes?
According to a 2025 Capital on Tap survey of 250 UK small business owners, 79% didn't have an exit strategy, while 36% had no intention of creating one.
Separate research by Charles Stanley found that 48% of business owners had no exit strategy and 37% had no succession plan.
Different surveys, but both highlight a worrying lack of preparation that I see and hear all the time.
I've founded, grown and exited businesses, and one thing I've learned is that the best time to plan your exit is long before you want to leave.
Because leaving isn't necessarily as simple as finding a buyer and handing over the keys.
Without a plan, you risk:
Lower valuations – a business dependent on you is less attractive to buyers
Fewer options – you may struggle to sell, hand over or step away
Financial disappointment – the proceeds might not fund the lifestyle you'd hoped for
Rushed decisions – illness, burnout or changing circumstances could force your hand
Lost value – years of hard work could be undermined by poor preparation
Imagine spending years building a business, only to discover you can't afford to leave it.
And exit planning isn't just about selling. It's about building a business that's sale ready, even if you never intend to sell.
It's about building a business with strong leadership, reliable systems, predictable profits and less dependence on you. A business that gives you choices and allows you to do more of what you love.
You might want to sell in ten years, pass it to family or simply work fewer days. All of those options are fine. Whatever your ambition, the decisions you make today will influence what's possible tomorrow.
So, if someone offered to buy your business tomorrow, would you be ready? Or would you discover you've built yourself a job that's difficult to leave?
Every business owner I work with 1-2-1 has a clear, executable business plan that we regularly review and update. It covers their vision, financial ambitions, lifestyle goals and the strategies needed to achieve them.
Because building a business without knowing what you want from it makes little sense.
Build a business that's sale ready, whether you intend to sell or not. Then you have the freedom to decide when you leave, how you leave and what happens next.
Starting to think about life after your business but unsure how to prepare for it? Let's chat.