How to Gladly NOT Sell Your Business for Top Dollar

How to Gladly NOT Sell Your Business for Top Dollar

Owning your own business is one of the most rewarding paths you can take, but it also comes with a unique set of challenges most people will never face.

A traditional employee typically enjoys predictable income, health benefits, paid vacations, and an employer-sponsored retirement plan. With consistency and discipline, they can gradually build wealth and retire with peace of mind.

But for business owners? It’s a whole different story.

Why Financial Planning for Business Owners Is Different

As an entrepreneur, there’s no guaranteed paycheck. You take home what’s left—after payroll, overhead, taxes, and emergencies (if anything is left at all). Health insurance? You’re paying for it entirely on your own. Retirement? That’s usually a “someday” goal that doesn’t come until much later, if ever.

This lifestyle is not for the faint of heart. You take risks most wouldn’t dare in hopes of reaping rewards most will never see. But along the way, these risks can lead to significant vulnerabilities, especially if you’ve built your entire financial future on the back of your business.

That’s where a strong, diversified Wealth Stack comes in.

What Is a Wealth Stack?

Your Wealth Stack is the collection of assets you build outside of your business, things that help protect and grow your net worth independently of how your company performs.

Unfortunately, most business owners are overly reliant on the value of their enterprise. They hope for a big payout at the end of the road, a profitable sale or transition that funds their retirement and leaves a legacy.

That may happen. But often, it doesn’t.

Why Business Risk Never Truly Goes Away

Even when your business is doing well, maybe especially when it is—there’s still risk. A lawsuit, a major client loss, a downturn in your industry... all it takes is one big blow to put your entire net worth in jeopardy.

Some serial entrepreneurs accept this risk. They move from one venture to the next, fueled by adrenaline and ambition.

But many of us are building something more enduring: a business meant to serve our families, employees, communities, and the next generation. And that vision calls for a more stable, intentional approach.

Diversification: Your Secret Weapon

To protect your financial future, you need to diversify. Not just in theory—but in practice.

The problem? Entrepreneurs often try to diversify the same way they built their businesses, by trusting their instincts, doubling down on what they know, and staying hands-on.

But successful investing doesn’t work that way.

When you invest in a stock, fund, or piece of real estate, you're no longer in control. Unlike your business, your success depends on external factors, executive decisions, market trends, interest rates, and the broader economy.

Common Mistake: “Familiar Asset Overload”

A classic example: an oilfield services business owner diversifies by investing in oil production.

Seems smart, right? But when oil prices tank, both the service company and the diversification asset suffer. You weren’t diversified, you were just doubling down.

To truly mitigate risk, your Wealth Stack has to span multiple asset classes, industries, and geographies.

What True Diversification Looks Like

A healthy Wealth Stack might include:

• A broadly diversified equity portfolio (4,000–5,000 stocks screened for value, profitability, and size, not hype)

• Fixed income holdings to balance market risk

• Real estate investments (with cautious exposure)

• Business ownership—but as one part of the stack, not the whole foundation

This kind of diversification is methodical. It’s not about hot tips or getting in on the ground floor. In fact, it’s often boring, and that’s exactly what makes it stable and powerful.

Our Approach: The Aegis Investment Process

At Schulz Wealth, we use a four-part framework we call the Aegis Investment Process to help business owners:

1. Strategically diversify across asset types
2. Track progress holistically, including real estate and business value
3. Plan for future transitions with eyes wide open
4. Protect against catastrophic events that could upend everything

The key is starting early, long before you plan to exit your business.

Why Start Now?

When you build your Wealth Stack before a transition, you give yourself options:

• Sell your business without the pressure to get top dollar

• Transfer ownership to family, management, or key employees

• Step away gradually without financial strain

• Maintain flexibility if life throws you a curveball (illness, disability, or loss)

It’s not just about retirement. It’s about resilience, flexibility, and peace of mind.

Final Thought: You’re Not Just Building a Business—You’re Building a Life

The stakes are too high to leave your personal financial security tied solely to your company.

A smart, diversified Wealth Stack is your best insurance policy against the unknown, and the best path to the life, legacy, and impact you’re working so hard to create.

If you're ready to explore what diversification could look like for you, let’s talk.

Click here for more information about our Aegis Investment Process.

If you would like, we can work up a Wealth Stack scorecard just for you. Simply reply to this email, and we can chat. 

Until next time,

Rob Schulz, CFP®