Be Careful Crossing the Street

Here’s a post from SFP’s Susan Laine  

What if you get hit by a truck tomorrow?  Have you prepared your business so that it can run without you until your family / estate can sell it?  Most business owners we meet have pushed this issue to the bottom of their list because they don’t want to think about it—no one wants to think about it.

But it’s imperative.  Think about how it will affect your family if you don’t.  The long term answer is Exit Planning.  But there are things you can do right now as a stop-gap in the event of this worst case scenario.

Set aside an hour or two one afternoon.  Don’t answer the phone, look at emails or texts.  Think about what you would want your family to know about your business:

· Where are the keys to the building, your office as well as your passwords to access protected information

· Who are your trusted advisors—CPA, attorneys, banker

· Who are your trusted employees and what is the likelihood of them remaining with the business until it can be sold? 

· Where are any important papers--life insurance policies, 401(k) or profit sharing statements

· Who should your spouse rely on for advice and guidance—create a list of trusted advisors who should be on this advisory board

· Who are competitors you would and would not like your estate to consider when planning the sale of the business

These are the basics which you need to get down on paper.  There are many more, but only you know what would be valuable information to your spouse.  Do it NOW.  For the longer term, think about preparing your Exit Plan.  And in the meantime, don’t walk in front of any trucks!

Comments

[Paul Cronin]

Good post. Most of us need to think like this, even if we don't all own businesses. I posted this to our Linkedin Group, Successful Transition Planning Institute and tweeted it.