How can baby boomers prepare for an exit strategy?

It depends on which study you read or who you listen to, but there is a fact many employers face: There are 76 million people born between 1946 and 1964, commonly known as baby boomers. By many estimates, 9.2 million business owners are over the age of 50 and approximately 8 million business owners will leave their companies in the next ten years.

If you are part of this cohort of business owners and seniors, you have some decisions to face. These range from financial savings to selling the business, and none of these decisions are that simple. As business owners begin to think about their future decisions, it’s clear that many business owners may not have prepared a plan for transitioning their ownership into partial or full retirement.

Consulting professionals assume that business owners need a plan to transition their business. I confess to being part of that group. Several questions are typically asked: “What is your exit strategy?” “I’m sitting on it.” “How much do you have set aside for retirement?” “Enough, I guess.” “How much is your business worth and when do you plan to sell it?” “I’m not sure, and who said I want to sell?”

I recognize that for you, this may or may not be familiar. But these are statements to questions that I have heard for several years. Consider this example: a man is retiring and comes home on a Friday afternoon to greet his wife. She greets him at the door: “Here’s the mop, broom, vacuum, and laundry cloth… these are your daily chores… stay out of my way while you’re in my house… oh, hello.” Honey, I love you, so glad to have you home.”

Is this a possible scenario that prevents a business owner from retiring? And if it is the woman who retires? Are you the type of owner who has succeeded in business without a plan? If so, what is the appeal of developing a retirement plan? What would you like to do in retirement?

To the chagrin of planners everywhere, you may not want a transition plan or exit plan. Much to the chagrin of those ever-hopeful young professionals who aspire to be business owners, you may not think they are prepared to handle the intricacies of a business like yours either. “I don’t know if there is someone who can run this business like I have, it’s so complex.”

So do you really need a plan to transition from one career to the next? Not necessarily, although it could help reduce stress and anxiety for those who advise and care about you. Are you open to an alternative?

Success may be backed by a plan, but a plan is a tool. Success has been shown to be most influenced by an individual’s level of self-awareness and authenticity. Retirement success can be achieved by understanding how you can create your dream role in retirement by determining what you need to do to become more self-aware and authentic.

Consider the change in role a business owner will make: full-time employment to partial or full retirement. The role change requires the owner to modify the expectations of him. But if we know what made you successful, we can also understand how to use that knowledge to help you create a successful retirement. And let’s not underestimate the importance of this role shift: a working life of 40 years or more to a life filled with uncertainty?

The process is simple. First, let’s understand how you make decisions about yourself. Second, let’s understand who you are and get to know each other better: your talents, behaviors, motivations, and natural strengths. Third, once you know yourself and become more self-aware, you’ll be ready to choose yourself: how true to your inner talents you can be, the real key to creating authenticity in your new retirement role. . Fourth, believe in yourself: pull the trigger and start on the road to retirement; and fifth, reinforce your efforts through regular review of the path you’ll be taking and readjust as needed as you approach retirement, always being prepared to learn additional skills.

Career transition can be an exciting process in which you can become more aware of your natural talents, behaviors, values, and strengths; understand how this affects your future vision of a successful retirement; and, by raising your level of self-awareness, becoming more true to yourself: more confident, more meaningful, and more connected to the new roles you will choose.

What are your talents, your abilities, your reasons and your path? Where do you want to go? How do you want to get there? What is your belief that you can get there?

In life’s wonderful journey through personal and work roles, would it help you a little if you could learn to be fully self-aware and authentic? If he started in the business so he could live the job of his dreams, doesn’t it make sense for him to start retiring while living the retirement of his dreams?