Owning a business for a long time means that it not only becomes a key part of your life, but can also define your identity.

So, it’s understandable that, as a business owner, you may struggle to let go of your business even when the time is right on paper. In the immediate aftermath, you could even feel like you have suffered a bereavement.

Read why it’s important for business owners to have plans in place for their exit – not only from a wealth perspective but also for coping with the emotional challenges.

Selling your business is likely to be a hugely impactful event in your life

Given that your business may have been with your family through generations, or it may be something you have built up from nothing through your own hard work, it’s understandable that the sale will mean far more to you than if you were selling shares or an old car.

The logistics of the sale may be challenging, as there may be detailed due diligence into every aspect of your company, including scrutiny over some of your previous decision-making. This process may feel invasive and leave you feeling raw and defensive.

Then, beyond the financial and administrative burdens, there’s also the potential emotional toll that the sale could have on you as the business owner. You might feel a sense of loss and struggle to cope with the challenge of moving on with your life without the previous certainties it provided.

Plus, selling your business could take several years, all told. It’s worth acknowledging the impact it may have on you sooner rather than later, helping you to cope better with the ongoing strain you may feel during the process.

It helps to understand why you have such a strong emotional response to selling your business

It’s important to realise why you have the feelings you do. A lot of these will be down to what you will miss, because owning a business is about more than the fiscal rewards.

Here are just three potential “whys” behind your emotional attachment to your business.

1. Your business provides you with structure in your life, filling not only your working day, but also a lot of your thinking time when you are ostensibly “not working”.
2. If you have employees, you will feel a certain responsibility towards their wellbeing and personal growth, as well as enjoying the social contact on a day-to-day basis. In fact, you may well spend more time with them than with your family over the course of a week.
3. Then, there is the psychological aspect of being a business owner. Whether you like to admit it or not, the status of “business owner” helps you define who you are, as well as how others see you.

It’s perfectly normal for you to feel a great sense of loss when you’re selling your business. Knowing the “whys” won’t get rid of those feelings, but it could help you to embrace the ups and downs as they arise.

Remember to focus on your future lifestyle, not just the capital event of a sale

You may wish to start planning for your future post-sale – but you could feel “stuck” and unable to move on. Some of the steps you can take to help yourself include:

• Appreciating your feelings rather than denying them, and giving yourself time to process them
• Taking your time over the sale process to ensure the transition is not rushed
• Having a clear and stated understanding of why you are selling, and referring to this during moments of doubt
• Seeing the sale as the start of a new era, not just the end of one.

Perhaps most importantly, if your retirement plans are unclear, your worry about the future should be a good prompt to start giving them more consideration.

Doing so can help you relax into the early stages of your retirement. Although you will no longer be a business owner or enjoy the stimulation and self-esteem that it provided, you will finally have space to enjoy other aspects of your life that you may have been ignoring.

Indeed, a key part of that planning process should be to appreciate the role your business played, and how you are going to replace what you now may miss, such as:

• Filling your time effectively
• Developing new social networks
• Finding new motivation and challenges.

Remember to think about how selling your business will affect other members of your family, and be prepared to include them in your plans for the future, whatever it may hold.

Getting expert help will assist you in dealing with the changes in your life

Getting professional advice to help you find the right buyer for the business you have invested so much time and effort in can give you the valuable peace of mind that comes from knowing it’ll be in safe hands.

Bespoke financial planning can help you avoid making decisions based on emotion and focus on what is right for you and the business.

If you’re looking to exit your business and retire in the coming few years, we can help. Email us at clients@iqf.ie, or call +353 71 915 5560.

Please note

This article is for information only. It does not constitute advice.

It describes financial planning services that iQ Financial can offer to you. Financial planning services are not regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.