Every business owner needs to clearly identify what they want from their business. This can be challenging because, if we’re honest, some people don’t know how to answer this question. I’m not saying everyone has this issue, but you’d be surprised how many business owners struggle with their answer to this question. That’s why they attend CEO Roundtables and other forums to see what others have to say. They say they’ll know when it feels right…but that’s pretty lame. I tell my clients they should know exactly what they want out of their business before they get started. In other words, start with the end in mind.

Think About Your End Game.

Imagine you’ve reached the day you retire. Ask yourself what you see:

• What does the business look like in terms that are meaningful to you…size, locations, customers, community, impact, etc.?
• What do your personal finances look like…how much money do you want to have to retire?
• What impact will the business have on customers, your employees and your community?
• How or will the business continue after you retire?
• Who will run it?
• How do you feel after you’ve walked away? Are you proud, sad, fulfilled or empty?
• Will you be able to transition to the next stage of your life?

Thinking through these questions will require some honest soul searching that you need to do for yourself. This shouldn’t be based on what anyone else like your accountant, attorney or some other disinterested party has to say.

This process can help you develop your Life Plan, a term that’s become popular in the last few years. I recently read a book by Donald Miller called Hero on a Mission (Miller, Hero with a Mission, 2022), where he suggests planning your life by writing the eulogy for your funeral. This concept can be used for your business. After you envision the end, in our case retirement, the next step is to reverse engineer your business working to the present day.

Let’s Walk Through an Example.

Let’s set a goal to retire in 20 years and have $2 million in your retirement fund for a comfortable bon voyage. When you retire you will have a succession plan in place where your child or a key employee buys the business and continues what you’ve started. Let’s start with these initial goals to keep it simple.

What do you need to start doing now to achieve these goals?

• Do you need to save $100,000 each year or do you plan to sell the business, or a combination of both?
• What do you need to start today to generate that level of earnings or create a business that has that level of valuation?
• What elements of the business do you need to train your successor, or a potential buyer?
• Do your kids or employees even want to continue the business?
• How do you prepare the business for a potential sale even if it’s years away?
• Do you have the processes, systems and people in place to get you through the next 20 or more years?
• Do you have solid financial performance in terms of sales, profitability, assets and cash flow that would be attractive to a prospective buyer?

• Are you in a position to finance a portion of the business sale?

These are all questions that you need to answer with a high degree of clarity. Then, focus your energy and actions on things that help you achieve your goals.

Your Long-Term Objectives

These should be incorporated into your Long-Term Objectives. Make these as clear, specific and vivid as possible. Think of these as affirmations. Read them every day and let your subconscious absorb them over time to create a future picture that will be larger than your current reality. That clear image will unleash the creative energy and motivation to draw you closer to your objectives.

With Long-Term Objectives in place, break down the activities to what you want to accomplish this year, this quarter, this month and this week. What do you need to do today to get you closer to achieving your goals? If you get pulled in other directions, ask yourself “does this help me achieve my goal?” If not, say no or delegate the activity to someone else.

Once you determine your end-game, focus and prioritize what you want. Your business should be the vehicle to achieve what you want in life. Don’t let it consume you and end up being enslaved to something that you don’t want. My advice is to control your own destiny and determine what you want out of your business by starting with the end in mind.

Contact Norten Consulting to help you start with the end in mind!