My business was unsellable.
I sat numb at my desk.
Another business broker had just told me that he couldn’t sell my business. At least this one had given me a reason why. He rather bluntly said . . .
Increase the profits!
We were doing $5 million in revenue each year, but profit was razor thin. I was earning next to nothing personally.
It was clear that I had to squeeze some more net out of that top line.
The good news was, I thought, if I can solve that problem and I can sell my business.
Right?
Wrong. I discovered the real, embarrassing reason why my business was unsellable while trying to fix the profit problem.
The Problem
After doing a system-wide analysis I discovered a key contributor to our lack of profit. It turned out that 40% of our clients were still being charged under our original pricing model. This old pricing structure was designed with company stability in mind, but it offered limited potential for upside net. Meager margins were baked in, but we couldn’t lose big either.
This pricing model was designed to reduce risk as we grew, but it was clear that it was going to limit our profit potential.
Good news! I just needed to change the pricing model for these clients to increase profits.
I had discovered the problem, and now I knew the solution. What comes next, of course, is natural.
The Solution
Naturally, I waited.
And waited.
And waited.
I waited almost 6 months to change the pricing for those clients.
When I finally made the decision to fix the pricing, I was granted enough self-awareness to see the actual, embarrassing problem that was making my business unsellable.
Me.
The Real Problem
It was about me, the owner, and the decisions I was making. I was the problem.
In this case, I was afraid. I feared that the price increase would cause too many of the clients to bolt to a competitor. I was fearful that pursuit of profit would create set-backs to our growth and systems.
So, I waited.
Motivated by a desire to minimize risk, I kept putting off an essential price increase. And that conservative motivation (which served my business well in the past) sabotaged my ability to change my business the way it needed to be changed. And this wasn’t the only time that happened. I was consistently making decisions, despite knowing better, that took my business away from where I wanted it to go.
As discouraging as that self-awareness was, recognizing the problem gave me the ability to do something about it.
Clearly, I was the problem. I had to try to find a solution.
The Real Solution
First, I tried to change my daily outlook. I tried to change myself and make day-to-day decisions differently. Long, remarkably painful story made short – that didn’t work. This part of me, the part that kept seeing the downside, that kept seeing the risk (not the reward) simply wouldn’t let go. I could see where we should go, but I couldn’t keep myself from making daily decisions that sabotaged our ability to get there.
Finally, I determined the only viable way to protect my business was to isolate the problem.
I ran away.
After I hired management, I stranded myself in a satellite office where I could strategically guide, but not influence daily decisions.
I actually exiled myself from my business.
And as dysfunctional as that sounds, it worked.
I picked a great team, I told them where I wanted to the business to go, and I then I got out of their way.
They Successfully Changed the Business, and Then We Sold It
I spend a lot of times these days talking to business owners who want to create transferable value in their business (make it sellable). We talk about sales, operations, financial results, and many other tangible parts of the business. But often, those things are only the symptoms that point to the real problem. If the business isn’t reaching the owner’s goals, we go back to the source: the owner.
How about you? Are you the problem? If so, take heart because you’re also the only solution to that problem.
Hopefully you don’t need to isolate yourself like I did. But if your business consistently fails to produce the results needed to build transferable value, it’s probably time to look in the mirror and recognize that ultimately, only the owner can make a business sellable (or unsellable) as the case may be.
Don’t be embarrassed, but don’t be stupid either.
Take a look and take a step.
