This post is about one of my 45-second pitches at my BNI Chapter, BNI City Business. You can read the introduction to this collection here.

23 June, 2023. A meme to match the message. I actually ended up re-creating the version I found online in an attempt to make it clear who it was referring to. Nonetheless, I think it still didn’t work for some in the room. Or maybe they didn’t think it was funny.

Exit Planning is as much about planning for what comes next as it is about preparing your business for sale. Your reason for exit needs to be clear, and you need to come back to that reason whenever you are feeling uncertain. If your reason isn’t clear and compelling, you will easily vacillate and change your mind about exiting. It will become too hard to prepare for exit, or you will convince yourself to stick around. That’s the easy path that too many business owners fall back on and are still working well after their original retirement goal.

Even if your next thing isn’t retirement, find your compelling reason to propel you through your exit process.

Developing and clarifying the compelling reason for exit – which I describe as a polestar to clients to guide them through the journey – is the first step in an exit planning engagement. This help lock in the why and indicates the likely timeline.