The Wealth Spa

Don’t want to work forever?

Posted on 21. Feb, 2008 by Elizabeth Potts Weinstein in Legal

Even if you love your business and have no plans to sell, I can guarantee you will not be able to run your business forever.  You may not be ready to create a formal exit plan, but here are a few steps you can take today to create value in your business, in preparation for the future.  

Document Your Systems.  If you are doing everything, and all the steps are in your head, what happens if you are unavailable.  If you want to delegate to staff and eventually sell your business, download all those tasks and procedures out of your brain, now.

Protect Your Intellectual Property.  One of the most valuable assets of any business is it’s "intellectual property" — patents, trademarks, trade secrets, and copyrighted works.  Not only should you formally protect your most valuable assets (i.e., file a trademark to protect your business or product name), but you should regularly police these resources.  One easy way to police your trademarks and copyrighted works is by using Google Alerts.

Pay Off Your High-Interest Debt.  Business and personal debt, and the interest due, will make it more difficult to sell or create personal wealth.  Right now you may be using debt to expand, but put in place a plan to pay off this debt as an investment in your future.

Save For Retirement.  Once you start making a profit and have enough to pay for personal expenses, set aside money each month for your IRA, business 401(k) or other investment plan.  Great way to save taxes and set aside assets for the future.

Create Passive Revenue Streams.  If all of your revenue is from you personally delivering services or selling products, you are capped on the amount of income you can earn — and you can’t get sick, leave, or take a vacation!  Repurpose your services into a system that can be sold to prospective clients or other business owners.  No only can you earn money without being there, but your business has another asset whenever you go to sell.

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• Estate Planning: What Every Business Owner Must Have (even if you’re single or broke) (3)

Tags: Exit Plan & Retirement