Build Systems To Escape The Hourly Grind

“Are you selling your business in New Zealand?”

That’s what someone asked me when I made known I was moving from New Zealand back to the Netherlands. Without hesitation, I knew the answer to that question: “No, the business is not sellable.”

It's not that I'm too proud to sell my business or that it's too valuable for the average person.

It’s because I AM the business. Without me consulting, designing or project managing, there is zero income.

You could say my customer base is worth something.

But, my customers, who are mainly irrigation installers, use my business because of the knowledge in my head, my experience and my skills.

Why My Business Wasn't Sellable

There were no systems set up for someone else to keep running my business if they bought it. If someone would buy it, this person would be so confused. I had no:

• No checklists
• No company videos
• No courses to follow
• No well-designed website
• No new client onboarding system
• SOPs (standard operating procedures)
• No brochures that explained what I do
• No own digital or tangible products to sell
• No own building with an office and meeting room
• No recognizable brand with clear values, mission and vision statements

And the list goes on.

If I look back and review the way I was working, it’s clear I spent most of my time on two things:

1. Working for an hourly rate
2. Doing administration work so I got paid for the work I did

These two things are crucial. Without money, it's not a business, it's a hobby.

But if I’m brutally honest with myself it’s fair to say I just did not build a solid business. I basically got myself an okay-paying job, without all the good perks of a job (holiday pay, guaranteed monthly pay, minimal administration work, the company is liable instead of only me, etc.).

The Key to a Valuable and Sustainable Business

I did not intentionally build my business ready to hire employees or be sold because I had no desire to do so. However, I do wonder how much easier it would have been if I had designed my business to be sellable.

A business that has a well-functioning website, a recognizable brand in the industry, brochures, standard operating procedures so someone else can learn how to do my work, products to sell, a physical office, a customer onboarding system, and a system that consistently and quickly delivers high-quality results for the clients.

I would have benefitted from that hugely. Financially and mentally.

What would make a business more valuable, easier to manage, and appealing to customers, new employees, and potential buyers? That’s what I wanted to figure out.

My research taught me that having an ecosystem of business assets is what adds most value to your business.

In short, a business asset is anything valuable that a company owns or controls that helps it generate revenue or create future value. This includes:

Tangible assets: Physical items like buildings, machines, tools, inventory, and cash.
Intangible assets: Non-physical things like brands, patents, awards, and customer relationships.

Basically, an asset is anything that would still be valuable without you.

Engineering Assets

This research made me look differently at business and what I was doing every day.

I started connecting the dots. The irrigation system I was engineering for a fruit or vegetable grower is a tangible asset. It increases the value of the business of the grower because it will still provide value without the grower. An investment firm can buy a grower's business, hire an operator, and use the irrigation system without involving the grower.

I now use an irrigation system as an example because I’m in that industry. But in every valuable business there as systems in place that work towards a profitable outcome.

In my business, there were no systems in place. Now I learned this, I’m dedicating time to engineering systems for my own business. Systems that can work without my time while still providing value. Which will make it a business asset.

If I can learn to engineer business assets for a grower, I’m confident I can learn to engineer business assets for a small technical business.

Work Smarter, Not Harder

Which business assets to build and how to build them I cannot recommend yet. I don’t have the authority yet. But I’m very motivated to figure it out.

My goal is to help ambitious builders and creators understand the importance of building systems and business assets early on in their businesses. I learned the hard way, and I don't want others to make the same mistake.

If you are like me, you don’t mind working on the business. That your highest priority is not to make it so automated you can sit on the beach the whole day in a sunny country and do nothing. I think that will get boring real quick.

It’s fun to work on the business. But imagine how much more enjoyable it would be if there were efficient systems in place to manage operations, onboard new clients, and sell products even when you take a day off.

The best book to read on systems and assets I found is 24 Assets by Daniel Priestley. He lists out the assets to build and explains what is required to build a valuable fun business.

If you don't feel like reading a whole book, subscribe to my newsletter. I will share my learnings and insights on building and maintaining a sellable technical business.

Conclusion

Building a sellable business is not all about creating a company that you desperately want to sell at any moment, but about creating a business that can run efficiently, even without your daily input.

It's about putting systems in place and building assets that add value to your company, making it more attractive to customers, employees, and potential investors when the time comes to hand over the torch.

Time to build and create.