Exiting Your Business? Breathe Easy with These Stress-Free Strategies

Think about this for a moment. One day, whether planned or not, every single one of us will leave our company. However, only a small percentage of business owners have a transition plan in place. In fact, according to a study by the Exit Planning Institute, about half of business owners do not have an exit strategy.

Often, business owners overlook their exit strategy until they need to make significant changes. After all, as a business owner, you’re busy with more pressing matters. As a business owner, you don’t typically plan for an exit when you’re launching, building, or growing. As a business owner, you’re busy with more pressing matters. 

An exit strategy, however, informs business direction and can limit entrepreneurs’ potential options in the future. In short, when it comes to leaving your company, prepare an exit strategy in advance.

However, navigating this process can be intimidating. For some, this could be conjuring images of legal battles, financial complications, and emotional turmoil. Still, it’s possible to have a smooth transition if you follow these stress-free strategies. 

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Business Exit Strategy: An Overview

This might sound counterproductive. But, before actually starting a business, entrepreneurs should develop an exit strategy. Why? By having an exit strategy in place, you’re more likely to set goals and make strategic decisions that will move your business forward.

An exit strategy can take the form of an initial public offering (IPO), a strategic acquisition, or a management buyout (MBO). Which exit strategy should you choose? There are many factors to consider, such as how much control they want to retain (if any), whether they want the company to continue as it was after they depart, or whether they are willing to accept a shift in return for a good salary.

In the case of strategic acquisitions, for instance, the founder will be relieved of ownership responsibilities while also giving up control. As an exit strategy, IPOs often carry the greatest prestige as well as the greatest rewards. Alternatively, bankruptcy is not regarded as a desirable strategy for exiting a business.

Business valuation is one aspect of an exit strategy, and specialists can help business owners (and buyers) determine a fair value by examining the financials of a company. Also, transition managers help sellers determine how to exit their businesses.

Rick Sapio, however, has also mastered the exit strategy.

As a young entrepreneur, Rick started his first company at the age of 13 and led more than $100 million in transactions by his twenties. Over the course of his career, he founded more than 20 companies.

Over the past 25 years, Rick has made over 100 investments through Mutual Capital Alliance Inc. (“MCA”). With more than 40 holdings, MCA has worked with companies in several industries, including financial services, technology, healthcare, real estate, and telecom.

As a result of his extensive experience, both the good and the bad, he guides companies and entrepreneurs through often difficult exit processes, ensuring that all parties are efficient and effective at every step of the way. In addition, he has developed a strategy for assisting entrepreneurs in gaining stress-free, cost-effective exits.

Tap into the Power of Mentorship

Despite early challenges, Rick Sapio’s determination and relentless pursuit of knowledge is what shaped his story. At a young age, he lost his father and faced the struggles of raising a single mother. 

However, he discovered a transformative power in mentorship — despite the hardship he was experiencing. For Rick, seeking mentors and role models became a habit. This led him to connect with countless individuals, including over 40 billionaires, who shaped his success and perspective.

“And if you think you’re too old to seek out mentors, you’re crazy,” he says. “To this day, I do it.” The reason? It is important for Rick to have people around him who can contribute to his life.

From Paper Routes to Business Acumen

Sapio’s entrepreneurial spirit was evident from an early age.. In addition to delivering newspapers, he established a bicycle repair shop and rebuilt cars to hone his mechanical skills. As a result of these experiences, he learned the importance of hard work and initiative. 

The most important lesson he learned was the importance of relationships. It is important to develop soft skills early in one’s life as they are relevant across a wide range of disciplines and professions, as he emphasizes.

“I was very much the type to just go talk to people, talk to strangers,” he says. “I tell my kids every single positive thing that happens to you, me, or anybody in the world starts with a conversation with a stranger.”

Values and Focus: The Pillars of Success

According to Sapio, identifying and aligning core values is a crucial part of business success. By knowing your values, you can make better decisions, differentiate opportunities from distractions, and live a happier life. 

He even shares his favorite Warren Buffet quote to illustrate this, “The difference between successful people and extremely successful people is that extremely successful people say no to almost everything and they only say yes to things that are completely aligned with their values and their important objectives.”

This is why Rick recommends everyone write their values and goals down.

Building the Right Network: Removing Toxic Elements

Taking into account how toxic individuals can affect our lives, Sapio advocates removing them from our lives. You should identify these people in your professional or personal life and cut ties with them. 

Similarly, he recommends reviewing past performance and setting goals for the future through a “Completing and Creating” exercise. The idea here is for us to all write down ten things we’re eliminating from our lives this year, such as toxic relationships. Alternatively, it could be unhealthy habits like alcohol, sugar, or a business that just doesn’t work.

Overall, you can get a lot out of surrounding yourself with experienced professionals. So, if you’re contemplating an exit strategy, you should speak to a qualified financial planner, lawyer, or business advisor. Through their expertise, legal hurdles can be navigated, finances can be maximized, and transactions can be completed smoothly.

From Wall Street to Holding Companies

Sapio gained valuable experience in complex financial transactions on Wall Street as part of his varied career path. His approach to business has been influenced by Warren Buffett, especially his emphasis on simplicity and holding companies. As a young entrepreneur, he describes how establishing a holding company simplified his finances and offered numerous benefits.

Specifically, Buffett told him, “You got to keep things really, really simple.” As a result, I became known as the simplicity expert when dealing with complex transactions, says Rick.

The Multiplier Effect of Masterminds and Shared Resources

When you have a holding company that has multiple brands that have similar alignments, there is a multiplier effect that can happen. For example, Rick’s relationship with the Gathering of Titans on  Richard Branson’s Necker Island. During this experience of co-founding the first-ever Entrepreneurial Week he was able to spend a lot of time wit Branson. 

“So, there’s a lot of investors with hundreds of holdings but Richard Branson gets the value of not only one plus one plus one plus one equals five or in his case, 400, but he also gets the multiplier effect to using your quote of the Virgin brand, which triples the value of his holdings,” Rick explains. As a bonus, the same structure also increases efficiency. There might be a payroll provider, a lawyer, and a computer that you use the same time after time.

Beyond 50 Billionaires: The Value of Curiosity and Connection

Because Rick is naturally curious, he had an interesting project. It involved interviewing over 50 billionaires. Why? In addition to genuine curiosity, he stresses the importance of building relationships with diverse individuals. In an anecdote, he describes connecting a billionaire investor with a potential CEO, demonstrating how valuable connections he can facilitate can be.

Specifically, this individual explained to Rick what the difference between a millionaire and a billionaire is.

Whenever they have a new opportunity, millionaires run around like chickens with their heads cut off. They need a website or hire people. There are all these things they have to do. A billionaire, on the other hand, “if I don’t find the right person to run it, I’m not doing it. I forgot all about that deal because I couldn’t find the right person.”

Conclusion

Those seeking personal growth and aspiring entrepreneurs can gain valuable insight from Rick Sapio’s journey. Despite adversity, he embraced mentorship, aligned with his core values, developed connections, and built a strong network. 

Anyone who follows these principles in their lives will be on the road to success and fulfillment.