Read time: 2 mins
Hey there!
If someone asked you tomorrow, “What would you sell your business for?” what would you say?
For a lot of owners, the honest answer is:
“I don’t know. I guess as much as possible.”
Which makes sense.
We’re not against more money.
But “as much as possible” is just not helpful.
What you need instead is to know your number.
Knowing your number means knowing what you’re specifically aiming for, based on a true assessment of the facts.
It comes from looking at what you want your life to look like after the sale, what assets and income you already have, and what gap the business sale needs to close.
Once you know that, you can work backwards.
What does the business need to be worth?
What profit does it need to generate?
What needs to change to get there?
And is the work required worth it?
That’s why we’re starting this new series, Sale-Ready.
It’s about what to fix, clarify and clean up before a buyer comes knocking, even if selling still feels years away.
Because the worst time to get ready to sell a business is when you’re ready to sell your business.
Starting now means actually being ready when the time comes.
So today, we’re starting with the first step: moving past “as much as possible” and knowing your number.
Let’s dive in.
How to know your number before you sell
1. How to move past “as much as possible”
A lot of owners accidentally start in the wrong place.
They start with the business.
- What’s it worth?
- What would someone pay?
- What multiple could we get?
All useful questions.
But not the first questions.
Because a sale price only matters if it funds the life you actually want after the sale.
So start here instead:
After you sell, what do you want to do with your life?
And:
How much money do you need each year to do it?
That’s the real starting point.
We see a lot of business owners who want the sale of their business to fund retirement, or at least give them the option to work less, invest more, travel, help family, or finally stop carrying the full weight of the business every day.
Very reasonable.
But if you’re relying on the sale to fund that next chapter, you need to know what that actually means in numbers.
That means working through questions like:
- How much do you need each year?
- How long does that money need to last?
- What assets, savings, super or investments do you already have?
- What income are those assets likely to produce?
- What debts need to be cleared?
- What tax or sale costs might apply?
- What buffer do you want for risk, lifestyle or future opportunities?
This is where you should speak to a financial adviser, because the right number depends on your personal situation.
Don’t just guess.
Work backwards from the life you actually want.
Only then move on to #2.
2. Know what your business is actually worth today
Once you know what the sale needs to fund, the next step is getting a realistic view of where the business sits today.
This means understanding the value a buyer is likely to see.
This is where getting a business valuation or speaking to a business broker early, can be really useful.
A valuation or broker conversation can show you how the market might view your business, what a buyer would value, what they would question, and what might reduce the price.
Sometimes this gives owners a nice surprise.
Sometimes it creates more of a “you might want to sit down” moment.
Either way, it is useful information.
If the number you need and what the business is worth don’t match, at least you know now, and you have time to do something about it.
Finding out when you’re exhausted, ready to sell, and emotionally committed to never answering another work email again is much less ideal.
3. Close the gap
Once you know what you need, and what the business is likely worth today, you can see how far apart those numbers are.
That distance tells you what needs to happen next.
Closing the gap might mean increasing profit, improving margins, building more predictable revenue, reducing reliance on you, strengthening the team, cleaning up the financials, improving systems, lowering buyer risk, or building a stronger track record of consistent performance.
Some of that work may take months or even years.
Which is exactly why you want to know early.
You’ll need time to turn your gap into a practical plan and close it.
Start with thinking about:
- What needs to improve?
- What will make the biggest difference to value?
- What should happen first?
- What support do you need?
- And how do you actually follow through?
That’s where the right advisers matter, including coaches and consultants who can help turn the gap into a practical plan.
The sale price you want comes from doing the work now to make the business worth more later. The right support can help you turn that into a practical plan.
⭐ Bottom line
“As much as possible” is not a sale plan.
Instead, get to know your number.
Get clear on what the sale needs to fund, what your business is worth today, and what work needs to happen to close the gap.
That’s how you start getting sale-ready before you’re ready to sell.
And the earlier you do it, the more options you have.
More options to sell well.
More options to step back.
More options to fund the next chapter properly.
And more options to enjoy whatever comes next, whether that’s retirement, a new business, more time with family, more travel, or becoming someone who says, “I might go for a surf this morning.”
Speak soon,
Lynne & Steve
P.S.
Next week, we’re talking about business partners and exit plans.
Because if you haven’t agreed on the number, the timing, the workload and what “ready to sell” actually means, the sale process can get messy very quickly.
Fun for lawyers.
Less fun for everyone else.
TLDR
“As much as possible” is not a sale plan.
To get sale-ready, you need to:
- know what the sale needs to fund
- know what your business is likely worth today
- make a plan and close the gap
Start early, get the right advice, and build the business value you actually need, so you have more options when the time comes.
And if you want help with this, check out our Business Consulting services page, or get in touch with us here.
P.P.S.
Know someone who’d get value from this? Feel free to forward it on, it might be exactly what they need to hear right now. 😉
