I’m an incurable DIY-er. I’ve managed many home projects successfully (and maybe one or two not-so-successfully), and given the choice, I’d definitely prefer having as much control as possible when attempting any venture. OK I admit it, I am a control freak like most entrepreneurs.

I’m very thorough by nature (an excellent quality for an accountant). I plan every project I attempt down to the finest detail, and I’m quite good at negotiating. So, when I finally made the decision to sell my business, I initially wanted to handle it on my own. After all, no one is going to be as invested in my own interests as I am, right?

However, I’ve been studying up on business sales, and frankly, I’m just out of my depth. I firmly believe in never attempting anything in half-measures, and given all of the variables involved in business sales, there’s no way I could manage in any but the most rudimentary way.

I came to this conclusion after reading a number of articles about selling small businesses and talking to others who have sold their own companies. I admit – the potential problems shook me to my core. I’m selling my business to simplify my life, not to give myself a series of heart attacks!

After several false starts, I decided that I should investigate the services of experts who sell companies for a living. After talking with several, I attended a seminar put on by Generational Equity, a leading M&A firm I found their information to be really valuable and based on subsequent meetings with them, I decided to pay their fees and hire them. That was real pain but based on my analysis, if it takes 9 months to close a deal, and they do all the heavy lifting for me, it is worth the cost. My time is valuable and I need to keep running my business while they look for buyers.

I’ll continue to document the progression of the sale, which will hopefully be relatively smooth sailing – insofar as these things are ever smooth.