| I recently read an article about a study conducted on over 65,000 Swedish earlier stage start-up companies and their owners who successfully exited one company and moved on to their next company. It pointed out that the second time around for the entrepreneur was not always a success. Most business owners after they exit from their business seem ready soon after to start another venture. This includes business owners that transition to the buyer company, but find out that they can’t work for anyone else anymore. The second business often under-performs compared to the first one. Why? There is no one reason why the same skills and leadership that got them a first successful company exit does not work the second time around. In some cases, the entrepreneur fails to understand the significance of timing and those “make-or-break” moments where their intuition helped lead the first company to its success. They sometimes forget or underestimate how much effort it takes and the chance events that got their first company the results needed to succeed. So what are the ingredients for a happy exit? It depends on the person; however, some common strategies included: The business owner visualizes what life looks like after exit. They don’t wait for the exit to happen and then decide, rather they are proactive about it before exiting. Test driving the next venture prior to exiting the first one Setting clear goals, deadlines, and amount of capital that will be committed These are just a few of the ideas that can help a business owner avoid moving onto a second or third business venture that ends up disappointing. Here’s to your next venture! Mike |
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