Knowing Yourself Makes Selecting A Business Easier Howard Bassuk So you have finally made up your mind! You are going to buy your own business! No more corporate politics for you. You never want to hear the words downsizing, right sizing, merged, acquired, or transferred again! You are finally going to do it...You’re going to tell them all what they can do with that latest company memo! You’re going to get the last laugh...and then...REALITY STRIKES!!! Your mind races as it asks itself, which business? How much will it cost? Where should I do it? Is the timing right? What are my choices? You can feel the hairs beginning to stand up on the back of your neck. A warm sweat starts to develop on your forehead, while a cold chill goes up and down your spine. As quickly as it formed, your granite-like resolve starts to dissolve, and you find yourself saying “Hmmmm....maybe my boss isn’t that big a jerk after all.” Or, “Maybe the _______________ (fill in the name of your industry here) business won’t continue to consolidate and downsize!” Your pulse begins to race as your mind goes back and forth between the reality of the uncertain life in corporate America, and the lack of knowledge you have of how to get the cure of owning your own business. RELAX...the cure is at hand! Not knowing what business you should own is perfectly normal! Like anything else that you look at for the first time, going into business is filled with new elements. They are not elements that are hard to understand, they are simply things that you haven’t had to deal with before. So, give yourself permission to explore these new opportunities, but keep in mind what your goals are. To succeed is it very important for you to take stock of both the business you are thinking of buying AND of yourself. In other words, you have to do homework on both the business and what it is, and on you, and who YOU are! I am often asked, “What is the best franchise to buy?” Many of the inquirers are very surprised when I tell them that I have no idea! But, if you stop and think about it, asking what is the best business, is a lot like asking someone what is the best thing to eat, or where is the best place to go on vacation! The answer will depend a lot on what you are looking for, what you like, and what your personal preferences are! Going into business is the same.  Like a good vacation, business acquisition and good vacations often start with the same ingredient.....RESEARCH! Starting out with your research is simple: Figure out who you are! Be honest. Be brutal. But, be fair! For example, if you are not willing to work 7 days a week, do not consider buying a business where you would need to work those 7 days. It sounds simple and obvious, but people often overlook these issues when they are doing their research. As you build your model, ask yourself how much you can comfortably afford to invest in a business. Also ask yourself if you can afford to lose what you investing? Do not buy it if you can’t afford it, or if you are going to lay awake at nights worrying about it. Ask yourself instead, what are you good at? Selling? Managing? Communicating? Organizing? You may be surprised at the high number of businesses that match up with your skills. When you realize that there is no correlation between the amount you invest in the business and the quality and earnings potential of the business, you will also realize that personal fit between you and the business is an absolute must, and that investment cost will often not be an obstacle in reaching your goals. Keep working to create a complete model of who you are, and what is important to you. Ask yourself whether you like a lot of employees, or just a few; whether you are patient with others or a perfectionist and a lone wolf. Think about how much growth you want, and whether the image of the business matters. Ask yourself how much money you want to make, how much free time you want and where the balance is between money earned and free time needed. Decide whether you want to stand behind a counter, go out of your location to find and market to your customers, and how much growth you want your business to be capable of. Think about whether spouses, family members and/or friends will be involved in any business that you are a part of. How does that affect the skills you bring to the enterprise. THINK ABOUT EVERYTHING I MENTIONED! Once you know the model of what a business should look like for you, there is a much better chance you can find it. Next, begin your personal research by establishing three time oriented strategies. First, create an entry strategy that will allow you to get into business safely. Finding a business that will match up well with the skills that you possess. You may not like the idea of doing a lot of the manual, hands-on work of starting a business, but you must be able to do it until you can afford to hire employees to take over for you. Make sure you are honest about this, because it can be the difference between success and failure! There are many good businesses, and many bad businesses, but that no matter how good a business may be, there are NO businesses that are good for everyone! Knowing yourself, and being honest about what you are good at, and what you will and will not do to make your business succeed, will go a long way to increasing your chances for success. Second, plan your long term strategy. In many ways, this is your most important strategy because it focuses you on your hopes, dreams, and long term goals. What do you want your business to like after 5 years? Will it be very large? Will you still be active in managing it on a day to day basis? How much money will you want and need to make from it, and will it give you the amount of personal freedom and independence that you ideally want. Make sure that the business you buy can readily accommodate your goals. Check to see if other franchisees have reached the levels of success that you need, and make sure that those successful franchises run their businesses in the way you would run yours. This second phase of the three tiered strategy is really the key one for you. Many people are fooled by the things they have to do in phase one. They confuse the tasks they may need to do when they enter a business, with the real business they are hoping to create. If your plan is to own multiple units, you will need a business that allows for you to easily hire, train and manage your employees and your locations. However, during the initial stages of your business you may wind up doing work that you don’t want to do long term. Plan for that, and keep your eye on your long term goals. You may not like the idea of yelling “fries are up," but you may love the idea of owning several restaurants. Be aware that the road to success is long, and that unless you have to be willing to roll up your sleeves when necessary, you may never get down the road far enough to really enjoy success. Lastly, plan your exit strategy. Just as you planned to get into business, plan to get out when the time is right. Make sure that the business you buy is the kind that is easy to sell, and will command top dollar when you are ready. Businesses that rely solely on your personal skills are not as easy to sell as businesses that can be easily taught and done by others. As you can see the same issues that confronted you in phase one and two, will have impact here too! Some people argue that all businesses are cyclical, and therefore you should always have an exit strategy in mind, even if your first choice is to pass the business on to your kids, or to hold on to it until you die! By modeling yourself carefully, and by comparing the model that you create with businesses that you look at, you can dramatically improve your odds of succeeding. When you take the additional steps of making sure that any business that you consider purchasing works at time of entry, over the long haul, and even when you are ready to sell, you further increase your likelihood for success. After all, if you think about it, aren’t there many businesses that you have seen that you feel you could run? Aren’t there many others that do not match up well with who you are and what you are willing to do in your business? By considering only those businesses that are not only good at what they do, but work well with your skill sets, you take some giant steps down the road to financial and personal independence. After you have created your personal model, and developed your entry, growth and exit strategies, it is time to look at particular business to see how they fit into the model you want.