A CPA’s 5 Best Steps to Launch Your Business to the Next Level!

I was just in a room full of extremely wealthy people. In Miami. In between hurricanes. Speaking at this event was one of the many adventures I had on my Epic Road Trip 2024, where I drove about 3600 miles from northern Indiana to Florida and some loopy-loops on the way back. More on those adventures, including machine gun shooting, waterfalls, and a drug bust, in a later issue.

Back to Miami.

One gentleman was sharing stories of his move to Dubai during the pandemic. He took his family out of Singapore as that country was locking down, and ended up in Dubai, where all the good things were still flowing like a cloud-seeded flood in a desert oasis.

Something about not changing his address on his American Express Black Card imposed a spending limit when there hadn’t been one before. (Too high falutin for me.) But his Black was now, unbeknownst to him, maxed at $100K. And “Damn!” he said. “I kept hitting that the first week of every month.” He had no idea how high his burn rate was prior to that. Maybe it was the Rolls Royce and the driver he bought to take his kids to school that put him over the edge. Thank goodness I’m past that stage in life!

Not everyone at this conference was mega-rich, obviously, cuz I was there, but most were doing pretty well, AND actively working towards bigger and better achievements through a variety of strategic paths.

But there was one core strategy the entire room agreed upon: Buying is better than building. Period.

• If you’re a first time want-to-be entrepreneur-BUY A BUSINESS.

• If you’re a side gigger wanting a full time thing–BUY A BUSINESS.

• If you’re a business owner wanting to grow your operation–BUY A BUSINESS just like the one you’ve got.

It’s a big move, but it’s much easier than you may think.

Here are your next 5 steps:

(If you’re a little unsure, find a more experienced business buyer to team up with, like me:-)

1. Practice looking at listings online.

2. Refine your investment thesis, aka your buy box.

3. Find a business that needs what you have to offer.

4. Plan the transition from the seller to you, the new owner.

5. Close the deal on that small business.

Yes, this is slightly over simplified, but only slightly. It’s a true and proven path to success.

If you were a want-to-be entrepreneur, you now own a successful business, in one transaction. Even if you spent months searching for your acquisition, it was way faster than starting from scratch. You have profit on day one. You have built in customers. You have automatic product/market fit. And of course, you bought a business that out pays your crappy day job.

And speaking of a job, it’s okay to buy a job, a small owner operated business, despite what the gurus are hollering at you on social media. You are already punching a time clock, right? It’s way better to punch that clock for your own benefit. More importantly, you now have a solid base to launch from, because this doesn’t have to be the end game.

Same concept for all you side hustlers inching your way out of the 9-5 rat race. Buy a business today and ditch the job tomorrow.

But if buying a business isn’t the end game…?

If buying a business is the launchpad…?

Then what’s next, you may ask?

First of all, people need to realize that buying a business doesn’t mean you're married to it for the rest of your life. View that business as an asset. And an asset is meant to be improved upon and sold for a profit at some point in the future.

Once you’ve bought this business, your launch plan goes like this:

• Learn to operate your business just as the previous owner had been, for at least 6-12 months

• Learn to grow your business organically.

• Slowly add automations and increase efficiencies within your business.

• Work your way out of the day to day operations of your business by systemizing and building a strong team.

• Grow your business by buying additional, complimentary businesses.

• Sell your business for 7-10 times what you paid for it. (It’s all about the capital events!)

• Rest-Recharge-Repeat.

Depending on your level of commitment, this can happen over as little as 5 years, or it could take 10 years or longer.

Look at the big picture:

In 5 to 10 years, you could be selling a business worth $7 to $10 million dollars.

But you have to start today. As my friend Lydia says,

“Take the next step.”