Do You Have a Business or a Job?

There are many studies that show that only a small percentage of businesses going on the market actually sell. BizBuySell.com estimates that number only to be 20-30%.

If we think about the fact that most business owners are counting on the sale of their business to be a critical contribution to their retirement fund, that number becomes even more worrisome.

If you are a business owner looking to sell your business in the next 1-5 years, a critical question you need to ask yourself is: would someone want to buy your company?

At Denver Business Coach we believe that no matter when you are planning to sell your business, you must be building an asset someone would want to buy – otherwise, you ultimately have a job, not a business.

By now most business owners conceptually understand the difference between having a job and owning a business, similarly to working “on” your business vs. “in” your business. But how is having a job vs. owning a business actually show up?

Here are eight ways to ensure you are building a company, not just doing a job:

1. A job requires that you show up at work to make money, whereas a company generates revenue whether you are there or not.
2. If your company is so reliant on a single customer that they can dictate how you deliver your product or service, your company is more like a job than a valuable business.
3. A job is a place where your personal reputation impacts your results, whereas a company is a place where the brand is more important than the personality of the founder(s).
4. A job requires you to use your personal experience and expertise to get a result, whereas a company is a place where a process – not a person – consistently produces a desirable result.
5. In a job, you get fired for taking too much vacation, whereas if you own a company, the more vacation you can take without impacting your company’s performance, the more valuable your business will be.
6. In a job, the harder you work, the more money you earn. In a company, the smarter you work, the more money you earn.
7. In a job, you solve the problems. If you own a company, your employees solve the problems.
8. If the majority of your customers know your mobile phone number, it’s likely you have a job, not a company.

If you’re not sure whether you have a job or own a business, it’s time to get your Value Builder Score. Whether you want to sell now or in a decade, the Value Builder Score assessment allows you to see your business as a buyer would see it, and to identify how you perform on each of the eight key drivers of company value.

The questionnaire takes about 15 minutes to complete, and after you’re finished you’ll get a customized 27-page report outlining how you performed and where you could improve the value and sell-ability of your company. Get your score now.