If you’re thinking about selling your business in 2026, the decisions you make before you go to market will matter far more than the deal terms themselves.
For most of my career, I’ve helped business owners exit their companies and transition into the next chapter of their lives. More recently, I became a Certified Exit Planning Adviser because I kept seeing the same mistakes repeat themselves. Great businesses. Hard-working owners. Disappointing outcomes.
What follows are three high-level steps every owner should take before selling. These aren’t everything, but if you skip them, you’re almost guaranteed to leave money on the table or regret the decision entirely.
Step 1: Remove Yourself to Increase Valuation
Most business owners obsess over revenue and profit. Those are important, but buyers care far more about value.
Value is created when a business can operate, grow, and sustain profitability without the owner being involved in every decision. If you are the bottleneck—if sales, relationships, approvals, and execution all flow through you—your business is worth less than you think.
Why? Because when a buyer acquires your company, they are buying a future where you are no longer there. If the business depends on you showing up every day, the risk goes up and the multiple goes down.
This means you need to audit your role honestly. Where are you inserting yourself unnecessarily? Where could someone else step up if given the authority and structure?
At Mills Wealth Advisors, we’ve been intentional about this. Over the past several years, we’ve shifted responsibilities away from the partners and into systems and people. Not because we want to work less, but because a business that runs on systems and talent rather than personalities commands a higher valuation.
Think of it like a basketball team. If one player hogs the ball, a good defense will shut him down and the team will lose. Businesses work the same way. When the owner does everything, the entire operation becomes fragile.
If your company revolves around a team rather than a single person, buyers pay more. It’s that simple.
Step 2: Clean Up Financials Before the Sale
This is where many deals quietly fall apart.
Most business owners run personal expenses through the business. That’s legal and common. Trucks, home offices, travel, meals, and other items often blur the line between personal and business use.
The problem isn’t that these expenses exist. The problem is failing to clearly delineate them before a buyer sees your financials.
Buyers don’t negotiate off what your business could make. They negotiate off what your profit and loss statement shows. If personal expenses are mixed in and not clearly identified, your profitability looks worse than it actually is.
And here’s the critical mistake: once a buyer reviews your numbers, you don’t get a second chance.
Trying to explain add-backs after the fact almost never works. Buyers anchor to the first number they see. If your reported profit is lower, your multiple will reflect that—even if the true economics are stronger.
Before going to market, your financials should clearly separate:
- Business-necessary expenses
- Owner-specific or personal expenses
- Compensation that will not exist post-sale
This preparation isn’t about accounting tricks. It’s about telling the financial story of your business accurately. When you do this proactively, you protect your valuation. Proper tax planning helps ensure your net proceeds meet your goals.
Step 3: Plan for Life After the Exit
This is the most overlooked—and most emotionally damaging—mistake I see.
Too many owners sell without a plan for what comes after the exit. At first, it feels great. Then reality sets in.
Golf every day gets old. Endless free time sounds appealing until purpose disappears. Even time with family can become strained when structure vanishes overnight.
I’ve seen countless owners experience seller’s remorse, not because they sold for too little, but because they didn’t plan for what life would look like next.
Whether it’s a new venture, a passion project, service work, mentoring, or family involvement, you need something meaningful to retire to, not just retire from.
Research consistently shows that people who dedicate meaningful time, often cited as around 1,000 hours, to purposeful activity after retirement are happier and live longer. The activity itself matters less than the intention behind it.
Your post-exit plan doesn’t have to be perfect or permanent. It just needs to exist.
Because the owners who regret selling usually say the same thing:
“I gave up a great income and structure, and now I don’t know what I’m building toward.”
Final Thoughts
If you’re planning to sell your business in 2026:
- Build a team and systems so the business doesn’t rely on you.
- Clean up your financials before a buyer sees them.
- Be intentional about what comes next in your life.
These three steps alone won’t guarantee a great exit—but ignoring them almost guarantees a disappointing one.
If you want to go deeper and talk through what a successful exit and next chapter could look like for you, we’re happy to help, schedule your free consult today.