Today, we’re going back 3 or 4 years.
Joe has just sold his first company.
He started the business as an undergrad. And after 18 years — it felt like it was part of him.
The journey had been exciting and challenging. The most difficult, yet most rewarding thing that he had done.
The decision to sell was very public. And although, he had no regrets about the decision — there was still a lot of moving parts that affected him, including leaving a team that he had built.
When the process was complete, he was left wondering what had happened.
What Do You Do After Selling Your Company?
At first, Joe was unsure of what to do.
A part of him wanted to take time out and unwind. But at the same time, there is an inner pressure to stay relevant and not let trends pass him by — there could be a missed opportunity.
He was 36 and mid-career — there was still so much he could do.
Joe had a clean slate. So one question stood out — what does the next step look like for him?
On the one hand, he could stay in the same industry where he had 18+ years in the industry to back him. This would be a tactical and relatively safe next move.
Or he could take a risk and change industry completely. This had some risk and vulnerability… he would have to learn a lot. But he’d still had the business knowledge to do it well.
Whatever the choice, there was still a big question about whether the second half of his career would be anything like the first.
Understanding Purpose, and Life-Work Balance in a New Role
Beyond the material aspects of what direction he wanted to go in, Joe was also asking how more personal requirements in work and his life fitted into the plan.
He wanted to
- Work with good people
- Be in a company aligned with his values and skills
- Be in an industry that was big, tech-related and growth-oriented
It’s easy to jump into a new business and let it take over your life. And he didn’t want to do that this time around.
Most importantly — he wanted work that fulfilled a sense of purpose. One that allowed him to — in his words — facilitate the extraordinary.
So when considering how work would fit into his life — he made sure that it was focused on his intention.
In his personal life, Joe now had a family to take into account.
And spending time with them was equally important to having a company.
So that meant never missing important events that surrounded his children’s lives, and being able to spend as much time with them as possible.
Exiting, for Joe, was a chance to really dive deep and ask who he was, what he stood for and what he needed to feel energised and fulfilled.
In this episode, we talk about
- What it feels like to exit on a good note
- How he decided what was best for him
- The process of starting a new company… he knew nothing about
Joe looked at his exit as a clean slate. It was a chance to work out what wasn’t working for him and how he could better his approach in the next phase of his journey.
Tune in for more insights!