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You built it. You grew it. You know it better than anyone— every client, every process, every decision. And that, right there, is theproblem.
I get asked this a lot, usually in one of two ways. Thefirst is genuine curiosity from a business owner who's heard the term but isn'tentirely sure what it means in practice.
Most business owners start thinking about selling theirbusiness when something forces the issue. A health scare. A competitorapproach. Burnout. A birthday with a round number.
There is a point in almost every business's growth wherethings slow down. Revenue levels off. Margins tighten. The team seems stretched despite the workload feeling the same. New clients take longer to win.
If you're a business owner in Dorset — or the broader South West — and you're exploring whether a business coach might be the right move, this piece is written specifically for you.
Most management teams don't fail because the wrong people were hired. They fail because the right people were promoted too early, given titles without authority, or left to figure out leadership on their own.
If I asked you what your business is worth, you'd give me a number. Most owners can. The problem is that the number they give me is almost never the same number a buyer would give.
If you've been exploring whatkind of external support might be right for your business, you'll haveencountered all three: coaching, consultancy, and mentoring. You may well haveseen all three offered by the same person.
There is a version of selling a business that most owners imagine: a clean transaction, a fair price, a smooth handover, and the satisfaction of handing over something you built and are proud of.
I've worked with a lot of business owners who knew, somewhere, that they were approaching the end of a chapter — but kept not quite having the conversation with themselves about what that meant.
Most growing businesses have too much data and not enough information. The accounts come in monthly. The bookkeeper produces a P&L. There's a spreadsheet somewhere with sales figures.