This article first appeared in The Q Review Winter 2019 Edition.  To receive your FREE copy – Subscribe here

“Having the ability to do what I want, when I want, with whom I want, in the manner I want.”

In the first part of this Blog series, we introduced the concept of the “END GAME”! Which is…

A business you can sell for a multi-million dollar pay day!

And a business you can sell for a multi-million dollar pay day should be your targeted goal, your “END GAME”, even if you don’t actually want to sell and even if you never do!

Because when you have a business that you can sell for a multi-million dollar pay day, then you will have built the near perfect business, and, most importantly, you will have options!

And whichever option you decide to take… You will finally be –

  • In total control of your own path and your own choices
  • Completely self-reliant
  • Financially independent, never having to rely on others, especially the government, to put food on your table, shelter over your head, or to allow you to do what you want to do.

And most importantly…

  • You will have the ability and flexibility to live the life and the lifestyle you choose.

This state is often referred to as having achieved personal “autonomy”, and is the ultimate lifestyle achievement.

Rob Nixon, master business coach, describes it as… “Having the ability to do What I Want, When I Want, With Whom I Want, In the Manner I Want.”

A business you can sell for a multi-million dollar pay day should be your targeted “END GAME”, even if you don’t actually want to sell and even if you never do!

So what does a business that you can sell for a multi-million dollar pay day look like?

Well in the first instance it is highly profitable.

With the hottest new “apps” aside, the vast majority of businesses will sell at a multiple of the profit they earn. So, for your business to be valued at a multimillion dollar price tag, it needs to be profitable, and be perceived as being able to maintain, and most likely grow, those profits into the future.

Secondly, and arguably most importantly, it will not solely rely on you to achieve its profits. In fact, one of the main reasons it will be highly profitable, is precisely because it is not solely reliant on you.

Sure, you are likely to be an important element, and certainly you will have been the visionary and the mover and shaker behind your business’ success – something no one will ever be able to take away from you.

But at the point someone is prepared to pay you millions of dollars to take it off your hands, it will be achieving its profits, and will be expected to be able to continue to do so into the future, without you.

Thirdly, it will be systemised. That is, the various functions of the business will operate effectively and efficiently, without you having to continually intervene, monitor and troubleshoot.

Fourth, it will have a team of people, good people, who have been well trained in their jobs and who are motivated to do their jobs and do them well.

However, it will not be solely reliant on any one person, and should the need arise, anyone within the organisation will be able to be replaced without significant interruption to the business’ operations or its profitability.

Fifth, it will also have a cross section of customers and/or clients.

This means it is not so heavily reliant on any one, that their loss would put the business and its profitability at risk.

Sixth, it will almost certainly have a dedicated sales team!

Something that is overlooked by the majority of small business owners who have not set themselves a goal of achieving the “END GAME”, is that very few businesses ever achieve the revenue levels, and therefore the profitability levels, required to achieve a multi-million dollar pay day without a dedicated sales team. If you can develop your business to have these six characteristics, you almost can’t help but achieve your “END GAME”.

And so now that you know what your business goal should be and you know what your business needs to look like in order to achieve it, here is one final, practical tip that you can put into practice every single day, that will help keep you on track to achieving your “END GAME”…

With every decision you make in your business, every day, ask yourself

“Will this course of action make my business more attractive to my ultimate customer? My ultimate customer being, the person who will gladly and willingly pay me a multi-million dollar figure, to take it off my hands!”