It is one of the most frequent questions I hear from tired entrepreneurs – you know, the people who are tired of working yet another day in their business. They want out. They want out soon. And they want it to be a big pay day. But, that is in fact the worst time to sell. When you need money the most and you have lost the mojo for the work. When sales are good, but your profits are bad. Those are the worst time to sell your business.

Would you buy a business (or anything) from someone who is desperate? It’s unlikely. And if you did, you would negotiate a really good deal for yourself.

The best time to sell is never when you need to sell. The best time to sell is when you don’t want to. When your balance sheet is healthy, the only thing growing faster than your sales is your profits and you love doing what you do. That is a good time to sell.

When your balance sheet is healthy, the investor will have confidence. When your sales and profits are growing, your investor can see a clear return. And when you don’t want to sell, you’ll negotiate the best deal you can imagine.

Ironically, the best time to sell your business is when you don’t want to and you don’t need to.