When opportunities present themselves it is helpful to evaluate them to make sure they comply with your goals, values and beliefs.
  
When I first meet with a business owner who is considering selling his/her business, I want to know what is really driving the decision. This usually leads to a discussion of their post sale plans.  As you can imagine, the variety of, and passion levels for these plans run the gamut.  That being said, it never ceases to amaze me how quickly some owners will abandon important goals to hold out for a few additional bucks.  

The following is a frequent scenario: Older baby boomer business owners will emphatically state that they want to spend more time with their wives, children/grandchildren, travel extensively and get involved in a cause to help others.  Therefore, it is important that they are free and clear of their business duties soon.... usually within 18 months.  From here the discussion turns to the spirited topic of what is my business worth? Frequently, the owner's business valuation expectations are higher than what the market will pay. However, in many cases what the market will pay combined with the owner's other invested assets is more than sufficient to support the owner's goals and lifestyle moving forward. But that doesn't matter!  Because the owner wants an unrealistic 6x valuation multiple for the business but can only really expect to receive a 5-5.5x multiple, he is willing to put his future on hold and keep the business for another three to five years.  To what end? 

We are living in extremely volatile, risky times. There is no guaranty the business will appreciate in value. And most importantly, the business owner will never get back the three to five years of important experiences and memories he lost out on.  If you are a business owner experiencing a similar dilemma, seek the counsel of a neutral party.

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