“Someday” Isn’t a Strategy: Why You Must Plan Your Exit Now

What if your exit plan never arrives? Most founders treat their exit like a far-off dream; something they’ll figure out someday. But that vague timeline sabotages your team, your business, and your freedom. In this solo episode, Bill breaks down the real cost of waiting too long to plan your exit. Topics explored in this episode: (0:25) The Exit Date is Uncertain *Time creeps up on you faster than you think.  *One day, you’ll realize you want to retire and there’s no one who can take on the business. (1:15) Client Case Study  *When you untangle a founder from the business, the team suffers.  *The founder and team have decades of ingrained habits that make a succession difficult.  *It took this client 6 years to properly sell.  (3:15) ‘Someday’ Timelines Hurt Everybody *You can think about exit plans as early as the first year of business. *This allows you to build a company culture around the ‘exit strategy’.  *The team gets a chance to be excited about their individual ownership in the company.  Bill Gallagher, Scaling Coach and host of the Scaling Up Business podcast, is an international business coach who works with C-Suite leaders to achieve breakthrough growth.   Join Bill in the Growth Navigator Coaching Program: https://ScalingCoach.com/workshop  Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.LinkedIn.com/in/BillGall Bill on YouTube: https://www.YouTube.com/@BillGallagherScalingCoach  Visit https://ScalingUp.com to learn more about Verne Harnish, our team of Scaling Up Coaches, and the Scaling Up Performance Platform, which includes coaching, learning, software, and summit. We share how the fastest-growing companies succeed where so many others fail. We help leadership teams with the biggest decisions around people, strategy, execution, and cash so that they can scale up successfully and beat the odds of business growth.  Did you enjoy today’s episode? If so, then please leave a review! Help other business leaders discover Scaling Up Business with Bill Gallagher so they, too, can benefit from the ideas shared in these podcasts. Subscribe via Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3PGhWPJ Subscribe via Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3PKe00u Bill on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/billgall/  Bill on Twitter/X: https://x.com/billgall