--- title: Are You In Control of Your Business? description: Gain control of your business and break free from the owner's trap. Make your business less reliant on you and build a sellable business. Read more. image: https://smartfinancial.co.uk/hubfs/website-images/full-width-backgrounds/background-12-1920x1129.jpg --- [![logo-colour](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/hubfs/brand-logos/logo-colour.svg "logo-colour")](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/) [![logo-white](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/hubfs/brand-logos/logo-white.svg "logo-white")](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/) - [About you](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/about-you) - [About us](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/about-us) - [What we do](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/what-we-do) - [Client stories](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/client-stories) - [Blog](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/blog) - [Contact](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/contact) # Are You In Control of Your Business? Business Blog 1 minute read by Smart Financial As a business owner you probably decided to pursue your dreams of ‘being your own boss’ in order to have more control of your life. You not only wanted to spend your time doing what you love and making the decisions over who you did business with, but to reap the rewards and to have lots of time to enjoy it. #### The reality however may be very different. You may feel like you’re working harder and harder, trapped in a business that can’t seem to operate effectively without you and you can’t seem to take it to the next level because you’re too busy dealing with the day to day. #### The Owner’s Trap Does this sound familiar? - You feel that every business decision needs to be taken by you - Customers want to talk to you as they see you as the expert in the business - You are unable to take a proper holiday away from the business without things slowing down - You are concerned that your business growth has reached a plateau, limited by lack of your available time to invest in it If so, you are experiencing signs of being in the owner’s trap. Recognising that you are in the owner’s trap is important, knowing how to get out of it even more so. Not only is it more stressful to run a business where everything depends on you, but it can also significantly impact the value of your business and ultimately your ability to sell. But even if you are not ready to sell your business yet, it is still important to gain control, to create value within your business and to work towards building a sellable business to give you options – and freedom – for your future. #### Break Out of The Owner’s Trap and Gain Financial Freedom The ultimate freedom comes from owning a sellable business and research has indicated that a company’s ‘sellability’ is driven by a number of clearly identifiable factors, with ‘reliance on the business owner’ being one of the most critical. The more you recognise and know about how to make your business less reliant on you and how to identify and overcome growth constraints the better the position you will be in and the more valuable your business will become. It’s never too early to start working less, to take back your time and to enjoy your life the way you want to! ## Latest insights and articles ##### W𝗼𝗿𝗸, 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 Smart Financial Team [Read more](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/blog/work-social-play-in-spain) 5 minute read ##### What a Week at Club La Santa Taught Me About Financial Planning [Read more](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/blog/what-a-week-at-club-la-santa-taught-me-about-financial-planning) 2 minute read ##### The New Year Isn’t About Reinvention - It’s About Refinement [Read more](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/blog/reinvention-vs-refinement) 3 minute read [See all articles](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/blog) ![logo-colour](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/hubfs/brand-logos/logo-colour.svg "logo-colour") #### Menu - [About you](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/about-you) - [About us](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/about-us) - [What we do](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/what-we-do) - [Client stories](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/client-stories) - [Blog](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/blog) - [Contact](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/contact) #### Address Beehive Lofts, Unit 4.1 Waulk Mill 51 Bengal Street Manchester M4 6LN ![image006](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/hs-fs/hubfs/signature-images/image006.jpg?width=200&height=58&name=image006.jpg) ![ch firm58](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/hs-fs/hubfs/signature-images/ch%20firm58.png?width=241&height=58&name=ch%20firm58.png)   #### Sign up to our newsletter - [Privacy policy](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/privacy-policy) - [Terms and conditions](https://smartfinancial.co.uk/terms-and-conditions) Site developed by [ClientsFirst](https://www.clients-first.co.uk/) Smart Financial is a trading style of Smart Financial Planning Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. You can find Smart Financial Planning Ltd on the FCA register by [clicking here](https://register.fca.org.uk/ShPo_FirmDetailsPage?id=001b000000Mg7KfAAJ). Smart Financial Planning Ltd is registered in England & Wales. Company number: 06274060. Registered Office: Beehive Lofts, Unit 4.1, Waulk Mill, 51 Bengal Street, Manchester, M4 6LN. The guidance and/or advice contained in this website is subject to the UK regulatory regime and is therefore restricted to consumers based in the UK. The FCA does not regulate tax or estate planning. © 2026 All rights reserved. ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Smart Financial", "url" : "https://smartfinancial.co.uk/blog/author/smart-financial" }, "dateModified" : "2023-11-28T16:07:38.772Z", "datePublished" : "2019-06-22T17:37:07.000Z", "headline" : "Are You In Control of Your Business?", "image" : [ "https://smartfinancial.co.uk/hubfs/website-images/full-width-backgrounds/background-12-1920x1129.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://smartfinancial.co.uk/blog/control-business", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://smartfinancial.co.uk/hubfs/brand-logos/logo-colour.svg" } } } ```