If your business can’t run without you, you don’t really own it. It owns you.
We all want to feel important. Indispensable. Valuable. But the more your business depends on you and other key people, the less valuable it is.
A business built on smart people solving complex problems sounds impressive. But to a buyer, it’s risky.
If you ever want to exit, start preparing now. Making your business an asset is the key to long-term success.
Buyers Avoid People-Dependent Businesses
Acquirers don’t like to buy businesses that are dependent on people because people are unpredictable:
They leave.
Get sick.
Have bad days.
Want more money.
I learned this the hard way in my first business.
For years, I relied on a team of brilliant minds. They were rock stars. They were also high-maintenance.
I felt on edge and always on high alert. Because my business not only depended on me, it required key people with special knowledge.
Turn Your Business into an Asset, Not a Liability
If your business relies on you or a few key people, it’s not an asset. It’s a liability. To make your business an asset, focus on removing key-person dependencies.
What happens if you or a key employee:
Burns out?
Changes careers?
Gets hospitalized?
Develops a serious illness?
What happens if a key employee:
Starts their own business?
Goes to work for a client?
Is recruited by the competition?
Freedom Comes from Systems, Not People
I finally realized: Freedom doesn’t come from brilliant people. It comes from brilliant systems. The more structured and systematized your business is, the more it becomes an asset.
So I changed my business model. We stopped doing custom work and built a scalable business.
Instead of rock stars, we hired people who could follow a system.
Make your business easy to love: Simplify. Systematize. Scale.
How to Make Your Business an Asset
Start here:
1. Keep a Log of Decisions You and Key Employees Make
Track daily decisions to identify patterns.
Look for tasks that repeat and create a framework for them.
2. Identify Single Points of Failure in Your Business
Who holds critical knowledge?
Who are your clients dependent on?
What processes break down without key people?
3. Create a Business That Runs Without You
For everything in your business, ask:
Can this be eliminated?
How can this be simplified?
How can this be automated?
How can it be documented?
Every dependency you remove makes your business more valuable. And gives you more freedom.