How to Achieve Financial Freedom

Think back to those first early, heady days when you were just starting your business. You didn’t just start it on a whim, did you? Instead, you planned ahead, put solid strategies in place and ultimately developed the business plan that’s taken you to where you are today.

At Smart Financial, we believe that money is for the fulfilling of personal goals, and we think it’s never too soon to start thinking about what financial freedom looks like for you, and how you can achieve it.

A Business Exit Plan: Passport to Financial Freedom

Creating a sellable business and having a sound exit strategy in place is one of the best ways to achieve financial freedom.

A business exit plan is essential to your continued success even after you’ve handed over the reins to your successor, but it’s also important because it will establish the means by which you’ll achieve financial freedom to enable you to leave – the financial freedom you deserve so that you can fully enjoy the fruits of your labour.

Follow Your Dreams

What’s your ultimate goal when you decide to exit your business? Is it having the financial freedom to do whatever you wish, perhaps to travel, or simply enjoy life? Do you want to retire early, spend more time with your family, or perhaps start another business?

We truly believe that life is for living so whatever your ambition is, you need to plan out your future, so that you have the money you need to achieve the financial freedom you desire. That freedom is necessary so that you can pursue those goals with enthusiasm, secure in the knowledge that you need never worry about running out of money.

Defining your “post exit” purpose before you actually exit also gives you a road map that will help ensure your continuing success and happiness as you move into the next phase once you do leave. You’ve worked hard for what you’ve achieved. Make sure your success will also support your continuing ambitions and goals after you leave.

The Best Deal Possible

With you at the helm, your investors and any future potential buyers know that your business is solid. A good business exit plan that details exactly what will happen as you move into position for exit will reassure investors and future potential buyers that you (and your business) are still to be trusted, still a good investment and attracting the best deal possible for your business.

A good business exit plan will also spell out how the actual sale or transfer is to take place once it’s time to do so so that the process will go smoothly.

What do you want to do with your business once you decide it’s time to retire or move on to other pursuits? You can:

• Sell to an interested buyer outside of the business

This takes careful planning. Ensuring you get the price you need for your business will also go a long way to making sure you have the financial freedom to do what you want with the fruits of your hard-earned success. Making sure that you put your business in the hands of a trusted buyer who will continue your legacy may also be important to you.

• Transfer ownership and management to trusted parties

If you want to keep your business in the family and/or pass it onto trusted members of management, you’ll need to plan for that too. Setting this up well before you make your own exit will ensure that the transition will be smooth.

• Stay in your business, but take on a lesser role

If you simply want to take some personal time off or stay involved in operations but cut back on your actual participation on a daily basis, you can decide to do that. This can be the best of both worlds, in that you’ll have the financial and personal freedom to do what you want, but still remain active in your business

First Steps to Freedom

Sound financial planning isn’t just about getting your investments in order before you retire. You should also have a solid business exit plan in place so that you’ll achieve the personal financial freedom you want and ensure the transition goes smoothly.

Even if you have years at the helm ahead of you yet, it’s wise to set up your business exit plan now. It can take you into the future and ultimately to the financial freedom you’ve worked hard to achieve