"If an owner can't take 3 to 4 weeks away from his business because he fears that when he comes back, it's going to be a mess, then the buyer's not looking at it as a business. The buyer's looking at that as buying a job — and buyers don't want to buy jobs." — Angela Parkinson

Most founders know they'll exit eventually. What Angela Parkinson knows — after 400 conversations with business owners — is that almost none of them are ready.

Angela specializes in exit strategy for business owners, and her opening premise is blunt: if your business can't run for a month without you, you don't own a business. You own a job. And no serious buyer is paying full price for that.

In this conversation, Karl and Angela get into why the exit conversation has to start with you — your identity, your life plan, your family — before ...