Life After the Deal: Planning Your Next Chapter

1 Secure the money first

Build a personal balance sheet

• List every asset and liability you will hold the day after completion.
• Include sale proceeds, pension pots, property, and any seller-finance note.

Ring-fence liquidity

• Keep twelve months of family spending in instant-access cash.
• Park the rest in short-term gilts or a money-market fund while you weigh options.

Assemble a wealth team

• Independent financial planner
• Private-client solicitor
• Tax adviser who understands CGT reliefs and offshore wrappers

2 Design your ideal week

Write Monday through Sunday on a blank sheet. Block where you will spend time on:
• Family and relationships
• Health and fitness
• Learning or mentoring
• Community or charity work
• Any new commercial project

If the calendar looks empty, add two trial commitments before boredom creeps in.

3 Choose a new purpose

Option A Passive investor

• Angel rounds or EIS funds with set cheque sizes.
• Clear criteria: sector, ticket, expected return.

Option B Hands-on portfolio CEO

• Buy a minority stake in a smaller firm.
• Work two days a week on strategy, not ops.

Option C Total unplug

• Gap year with family.
• Complete a degree or craft course.

Purpose can evolve. Commit for twelve months, then review.

4 Protect mental health

• Expect an adrenaline dip four to six weeks after completion.
• Schedule weekly exercise and social contact before it hits.
• Join a mastermind or peer group of former owners.

5 Guard the legacy you left behind

• Ask for quarterly board packs for the first year if covenants allow.
• Offer optional mentoring hours to your old leadership team.
• Celebrate shared milestones publicly to reinforce goodwill.

Quick self-check

• Do you know your annual family spending to the nearest ten per cent?
• Have you diarised non-work commitments for the first three months post-sale?
• Is a vetted wealth team ready to act within thirty days of completion?
• Have you written one paragraph on why you sold and what comes next?

Next step

Draft a one-page life-after-exit plan covering finances, calendar, and personal mission. Review it with your spouse and adviser before the money lands so you enter the next chapter on purpose, not by accident.