Successful Transitions Focus on Growth

“Every significant accomplishment begins with one person stepping up and committing to making a difference” ~ John C. Maxwell.

This is how I started an article I wrote in 2014.

I commented that “there is a fear around spending more money, committing more time, giving up freedoms, or increasing time away from family and friends that stops so many business owners from doing what needs to get done to ensure their business grows.”

This is often true for us business owners that have been running our businesses for over a decade or more. Only invest when needed? So when do we need to invest if we are already successfully running our business? We should always be looking at what will be needed, with both a short- and long-term view, especially when we are starting to think about what would happen to the business if we were to leave.

Leaving a business, that you hope to one day sell, requires a business that can continue to grow and be competitive. This is why, focusing on business growth is always a goal of a successful business, start-up or not.

• If you want more time in your business, build the business to better leverage other peoples’ time.
• If you want to make more money in your business, increase your market reach or product/service offerings.
• If you want to spend less money, make more profit, so the percent of expenses verses your gross income is lower.
• If you want less time away from your family and friends, build better systems that ensures the business can Run Without You.

Leaving a business, that you expect to simply close down one day, still requires planning.

• You may have assets you need to sell (including both physical – like equipment – and intangible – like your client list).
• You must finish your relationship with CRA and pay all your taxes.
• You must dissolve your corporation (or keep paying taxes on it if you don’t).
• Plus you will need to close down accounts (bank accounts, software accounts, online payment accounts etc.), complete all contracts, pay out all employees, etc.

Don’t wait until you are ready to walk out the door. If you were going on a vacation, you wouldn’t simply walk out the door and then declare you are leaving on vacation. Like any good transition, being prepared ensures you will have the outcome you desire, in the time you envision.

This article is 100% original content – The articles you read in this blog are 100% created by Barb Stuhlemmer, not by AI. © 2025 Barb Stuhlemmer