Would I Sell my Business?

“I will sell my business when it makes a profit of [$??] a year, so that I can [??].”

When asked this question, I think I would sell my business when it had reached what I feel is the peak of it’s performance. In other words, if the revenue is the same after 2 or 3 years in a row, regardless of the amount, then I would say it has reached it’s full potential at my hand. So now I would have to consider outsourcing some aspects of the business so that I may grow the company. However, for me, honestly I am not sure what I would do at this point. There are a couple of options I suppose. If I were to sell my business, I would use the money to invest in a new company. I would work really hard to grow the new company bigger and better than the one before it. Now I would have some capital behind me at the beginning rather than at the end. Of course, on the flip side of this, maybe I would not sell my business. What if I took the profit to hire more people. Then I could produce more product quicker thereby getting a bigger return on my investment? If I did choose this option I would have to be careful my expenses did not cause my revenue to decrease. After writing about both of these options I do think I would be more inclined to sell my business at it’s plateau. I would not want to compromise the quality of my product after working so hard to grow the company to the point where it was at. Maybe I could take a small percent of the money from the sale of my company and put it in a secure investment for my future and use the rest to reinvest in a new company. Although it may be difficult to sell a company that I would have put my heart and soul into I know that it is important to recognize when it is time to let go.

Saving 10% of Income

The Richest Man in Babylon by George Samuel Clason is a book about financial advice. Through many stories there are lessons about managing your money. The stories take place in ancient Babylon but the wisdom carries through today. So what have I learned from this book that I can apply today to help me save?

I am obviously still a teenager living at home with my parents and I currently do not have a job, so I will have to speculate. There are some easily discernible ways to accomplish this, like setting a budget for my entertainment. Things like eating out, going to the movies and concerts, although they are important for mental health, need limits. Even spending money on Starbucks coffee daily can really add up. Keeping a record of these things for maybe a month or so would help me realize how much I am actually spending. Which is probably more than I could imagine.

Now if I were living on my own I would look at things like groceries. How much money am I spending at the supermarket? Cutting back on food by growing a garden can save money and it is way healthier. I would also cut back on heating and air conditioning, it is okay to be a little too hot or a little too cold. Giving up a little can add up to a lot. Paying attention when shopping for clothes and necessities could easily save 10% of my hypothetical income. I would make the effort to look for sales and discounts. I would not be afraid to be thrifty. I have found cool things in the past at yard sales and second hand stores. I would even be willing to clip coupons.

To me accomplishing all of this comes down to self discipline. It is really the only attribute that any of us need to save 10% of our income. If you think about it 10% is not really that much. It would only take a little cutting back to reach this goal.