The Three Pillars of the Exit Mindset

Why settle for anything but the best?

You deserve to receive the highest possible profits and valuation from your business, whether you decide to sell it or not. After implementing the Exit Mindset methodology, that’s exactly what you’ll get. Rem breaks down his decades of research and experience into its simplest form, so you can apply it to your business and hit the ground running to take action today.

He starts with the three pillars of the Exit Mindset, what Rem calls KEF’s, or Key Exit Factors. Rather than an extremely detailed, step-by-step blueprint or textbook, these are lenses to examine your business through that will show you where it can improve, opportunities for you to alter your viewpoint, and see your company through the eyes of a buyer, to begin ‘Thinking Like a Buyer’, then that’s an issue with your infrastructure.

These types of flaws will be the most obvious to a potential buyer, because they are the easiest things to fix and have the most likely opportunity for profit increase. So the question here is, do you want to do the work, build your company the right way, and make the profits you deserve? Or do you want to earn a fraction of that, and allow a buyer to make exponentially more off of your efforts because they saw where your company could be improved and acted upon it?

This principle isn’t only about profits either. The better your company’s infrastructure is, the less hands-on work you have to put in to keep it running smoothly. That means you’ll have more time for yourself, to spend with friends and family, and you’ll enjoy the process of owning your business that much more.

There’s no one-size-fits-all in business.

Your business is unique, and it deserves to be treated that way. There is nothing else out there like it. Just like there’s only one Facebook and only one Microsoft. They both organically grew into the companies they are today through trial and error, and the evolution of their internal policies. Over the years, they saw where they could improve, and after targeting those areas, became the dominating market presences they are today. Thankfully, Rem’s already discovered the 3 principles that you need to start with: Product, Infrastructure, and Conversation.

Product

The most important KEF is also the one that appears to be the simplest. If you don’t have an exceptional product, then why would another company want to buy it? Or even a consumer for that matter?

First, what counts as a product? Most people see it as a tangible object, something you can hold in your hand, but that’s not all a product can be. It can also be a strategy, a concept, or even a theory. What matters is that your company produces and/or utilizes it in a way no one else can. Consulting firms are a perfect example, and are an invaluable service provider in nearly every industry. So when thinking about your product, don’t get hung up on its physicality. Focus on its value.

With that clarification, the most important part of examining your product through the Exit Mindset is seeing it through a buyer’s eye. Is it a unique product? Do consumers actually need/want it? Will it be able to hold its own in the current marketplace? 

If you answered yes to all of those, then perfect! If not, consider what you need to change about your product to make it invaluable to your consumer, because that’s how a buyer will look at it. If they can see places where your product can be improved, they will value your company for less than it’s really worth. If you decide to sell for what it is worth, the buyer will do the work you could be doing right now, and then profit heavily off of it themselves.

If you have the perfect, most unique product on the market, but your infrastructure is lacking, then you won’t be earning your highest possible profits, and your business valuation will be lacking in return. This is the most complex KEF and something that truly determines the success or failure of your business.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure is all about the cohesiveness and processes of your company, how all of the pieces work together. It’s everything that allows your product to reach the marketplace. For example, if you have the materials and the production equipment to create your product, but you can only sell a very limited amount at one time – you have a problem with your infrastructure.

Conversation

Now that you’ve examined all of the behind-the-scenes aspects of your company, it’s time to look at your direct interactions with the customer. This includes your verbal and textual conversation(s), as well as every non-verbal cue, such as how you present yourself and your company, the location, the branding, etc.

It’s all about minimizing any incongruence between how you want your company to be seen, and how it’s actually seen. 

A perfect example of this is if Costco decided to make valet parking the standard practice at all of its warehouses. That would be immediately jarring to a customer. Where they expected a no-frills warehouse, instead they see a high-class, white-glove experience, which lends itself to a different price range and class of products entirely. 

That kind of disconnect makes a consumer and buyer skeptical of your company and the conversation you’ve initiated. So keep in mind that what you tell a buyer (advertisements, etc.) has to match up with what you show them (the experience of using your product).

One, two, three… go!

Now, using these 3 Principles, you can start making the necessary changes that your company needs to make you the most profit possible. You might even find that the new version works so well that you don’t want to sell it anymore! Either way, you’ll be reaping what your hard work is actually worth. You’ll never have to experience the disappointment of having to settle for less.

So if you decide to sell your company, buyers will not only see it and want it for themselves, they’ll want to outbid everyone else for a chance at it. 

Rem has proven that this methodology works. He has spent years in the trenches of business creation and valuation, learning from others and applying it to his businesses, too. The simple process of improving your company’s product, infrastructure, and conversation surrounding it will improve your business valuation and earn you the profits you deserve. Now all that’s left is getting to work! Take action for your business, today!

Follow Exit Mindset for more ways to “Think Like a Buyer” on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram