Explore the personal and emotional aspects of selling a SAS business. Learn about the significance of hiring the right people. Highlight the benefits of creating an organizational chart. Discuss options for the future of a business, including selling or retaining ownership. Emphasize the desire to keep progressing and the idea of listing the business on acquire.com.
Read more
AI Summary
AI Chapters
Episode notes
auto_awesome
Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
Selling a business can evoke feelings of loss and challenge the founder's identity, highlighting the deep connection between a business and its owner beyond financial value.
Hiring specialists and embracing delegation can help founders focus on their strengths, leading to business growth and the ability to envision future roles and the need for hiring.
Deep dives
The emotional impact of selling a business
Selling a business can lead to a sense of loss and a feeling of missing a part of oneself. The speaker shares their own experience of selling their business and feeling a deep connection to it beyond just its financial value. They highlight that businesses are often intertwined with the founder's identity, making the process of letting go challenging. However, they suggest that there are other ways to move forward and make a change.
Hiring as a way to transition from running a business
One option for founders looking to transition from operating their business is to hire specialists to take care of tasks they are not good at or do not have time for. The speaker emphasizes that hiring is a normal part of business growth and can help founders focus on what they excel at. They mention an exercise from a book where founders envision the future and create an org chart of the roles they will eventually need to fill. This exercise can help founders see the need for hiring and delegating tasks.
Restructuring ownership and considering an operator CEO
The speaker discusses an alternative approach to ownership by restricting oneself to the role of an owner and hiring an operator CEO to run the business. They argue that a dedicated CEO can often run the business more effectively, allowing the founder to maintain ownership and passive income. The speaker acknowledges the desire to have an impact and be part of a moving world, but also considers the financial and impact-driven aspects of making decisions about the future of their own projects.
Many indie hackers and solopreneurs have a big exit as their primary goal. That might be because of the money, but also because of a business’ limited life span. But is there something like a ‘forever business’?