Your Exit Readiness Secret Ingredient

Growing up, my mom made these fabulous cookies. The whole house smelled good, the cookies were warm and gooey - I mean these were seriously good cookies - and my entire life, I watched my mom eat the broken cookies.

It wasn’t until I was a teenager that I finally thought to ask, “Mom, why do you only eat the broken cookies? Do they taste better?” She just laughed and said, “No, I eat the broken cookies so you can have the whole ones!”

And this memory came rushing back to me several years ago as I was struggling to describe a really tricky pattern I’ve seen in the decades I’ve worked with women business owners.

This image of my mom, eating the broken cookies, popped in my head. And I realized that’s what we, as women, are doing in our businesses.

We are bringing that spirit of self-sacrifice we saw in our role models - our moms and our grandmothers - right into our business.

That's what I call The Broken Cookie Effect®. When everyone around us - our staff, our clients, our families - gets the whole cookie and we live on crumbs.

-- Excerpt from Patty’s book, Your Hidden Advantage: Unlock the Power to Attract Right-fit Clients and Boost Your Revenue

Today’s Question:

How does The Broken Cookie Effect® show up when women exit their businesses?

But Here’s the Twist . . .

As women, we’re taught to put others first. I get it - but here’s something important I’ve learned as a parent. My physical and mental health directly impacts the well-being of my kids. Putting myself last doesn’t serve anyone.

Nowhere do I see The Broken Cookie Effect® more acutely than when women exit their businesses.

At some point, you will exit your business, whether it’s voluntary or not. When you think about your exit:

• do you doubt that anyone will value what you’ve built – enough to buy your business?
• do you wonder who to trust to help you with this major life transition?
• do you worry you’re leaving your life’s work, your impact, and your legacy in the hands of fate?

That’s The Broken Cookie Effect® in action – when we discount the idea of achieving an exit that enables us to grab the whole cookie.

Even when your business is very successful – maybe especially then – you’re busy saving the whole cookie for everyone else.

Meanwhile, you’re still eating the broken cookies, enduring that internal pressure that every problem is yours to solve, worrying you’re the bottleneck in moving things forward, and feeling acutely alone without a trusted, knowledgeable confidante.

Now What?

It’s tough – and scary to consider your exit. You're not just selling a company; you're transitioning a piece of your identity. Your business is an embodiment of your passion, hard work, and aspirations.

I know how that feels – and how to beat The Broken Cookie Effect®.

It’s why I do the work I do, helping women unlock the value tied up in your business by addressing the practical, emotional, confidential, and logistical challenges that plague the exit transition.

Everything you experience during this transition is new and unique, and there’s no reason you should know what you don’t know. You will likely experience doubt, fear, confusion, frustration, and even anger. The stakes are high and there are so many unpredictable variables in an exit.

That’s why having a roadmap from the very beginning is crucial. It’s your Secret Ingredient to beat The Broken Cookie Effect® and the first step to an Elegant Exit™.

Your exit can lead to wealth if you choose to sell your company, but what brought you here won’t get you there.

An Elegant Exit™ requires a new way of thinking, new skills, a simple and elegant design, and an advocate on your side. Contact me to learn more.

Discover your Exit Readiness Index™ with this assessment: http://she-exits.com/

How does The Broken Cookie Effect® show up when women exit their businesses?

I'd love to hear what you think.  I read and respond to every email personally.