By Jessica Martinka
Horror stories abound! Both parents working from home, kids taking virtual classes, and bandwidths stretched thin, both internet and personal.
The virtual work world makes it much more difficult to know what’s going on. Unlike the schmoozing, collaboration, and gossip we used to do in person.
Not knowing what changes and/or decisions are being made that could affect your employment and life can bring the fear of the unknown, and I can surely relate to that.
I was working at Online Trading Academy when corporate bought out the local owner and started “taking over.” The next day corporate employees swarmed the place and we were left in the dark wondering if we would still have our jobs.
Every night I went home worried sick. Soon after the takeover, everyone was gone except for me. They had brought in a new GM and my job was to get her up to speed. Once I did, they let me go. I had convinced myself they were going to keep me, not realizing I was training my replacement. Pretty naïve.
We see this corporate maneuvering all the time and it’s why executives choose to escape the corporate world and buy a business. They are fed up and want to be more in control of their future.
So, what makes a qualified buyer?
- Experience – To buy a mature profitable business, a buyer must have the appropriate experience and skills in managing people, processes, money, and enthusiasm.
- A good personality – A person will never buy from or sell a business from someone they don’t like. The buyer and seller must trust and feel comfortable with each other. Business buying and selling is a life-changing decision for both parties. Relationships rule.
- Capital – the cash needed is tied to the size of the business and the fair market salary for the job of running the business. For an individual buyer, figure at least two times that fair market salary from the buyer.
A smart buyer will hire a great team of advisors and make sure they have experience in buy-sell transactions of the size and type he or she seeks. This will give you a better chance of getting the deal done, which happens to be the title of our new book.
Owning your own business puts your future in your own hands.
“Your chances of success are clearly best when you buy an existing, profitable business for many reasons.” Richard Parker
“Owning a business is risky but if you buy a mature, profitable, and fairly priced business your leap of faith is off a chair not the roof.” John Martinka
