You may have spent your whole life building your business. Finding investors, finding partners. Hiring vendors and employees. Gaining customers, gaining income. Now that you’ve got it running like clockwork, you need to think about your exit plan. How are you going to ride off into the sunset and retire? What will happen to this enterprise you’ve built?

You started your company with dreams of making millions. Now you are thinking about a business exit. When the time comes to business exit , you will want to keep as much after tax dollars as you possibly can in exchange for your business. Advance preparation can make a big difference in the amount you pocket after the sale of your business.

Maybe you’ve been waiting for this moment all your life – aaahhhhh, retirement. Or maybe you think the market is right and you want to get out while the getting’s good. Either way, you’ve decided to sell your business, and you’re wondering what steps you should take. Well, before you post to Facebook, decide on a price or even tell your mother – here’s the very first thing you should do.