Hey {{first_name}},
A lot of gurus talk about how to make money and ‘the millionaire lifestyle’, but what actually happens after a life changing exit event?
Here’s the real world story of what happened after I sold my company.
Clear off my cards
You sold to have less financial stress and make your wealth liquid, so why wouldn’t you apply that to your personal life?
I had a few minor personal debts and a mortgage, and paying them off regardless of low interest rates felt great. It’s about the mental release more than anything else. I’ve seen a lot of videos online about ‘good debt’ and arbitraging interest rates etc, mostly from book smart people who don’t have money themselves. Finance isn’t just about numbers and people always forget the emotional side, peace of mind always trumps returns.
Make sure you check the loan small print on early redemption fees though!
Give yourself a ‘hobby fund’
Now that you have some peace, enjoy yourself!
I put 10k into a checking account where I just tried everything. I reckon this is a good number for you when you sell and once you commit to the number, spend it!! Especially if you’re a frugal type, you’ve achieved your exit event and now you deserve to enjoy it.
I became a licensed falconer, I bought a load of art supplies, and I drove all around Europe. It doesn’t matter what the hobby is. It’s easy to spend a few grand but actually quite hard to spend more than $5k on these hobbies, so feel free to splurge.
If you’re a business owner already, chances are you don’t like to ‘relax’ much anyway, you’ll have a much more fulfilling and enjoyable time doing what I call ‘goal oriented recreation’. Set fun goals and go after them with the same enthusiasm you ran your business.
Do that sport you never had time for with purpose and see how far you can take it
Think for the Long Term
You don’t have to think about sales or employees or quarterly reports anymore. There aren’t any fires to put out. You can now plan years and decades ahead for you and your family.
You can plan your next company, where in the world you want to live, or even your personal succession plan.
I really spent time thinking very deeply about all the different options I could take with my life.
More than anything, you’ll consider the opportunity costs of what routes you will take in the future. Think about the ‘caps’ of where you go, what’s the maximum potential your new ventures can have and do they exceed what you did in your last business.
Hope this helps, and if you have any post exit stories you want to share, please let us know!
Unlocking Wealth Weekly