Most Founders Plan Exits Too Late - And why that single mistake quietly destroys valuation

There is a moment many founders remember clearly.

The business is finally working.

Revenue is growing.

The team is in place.

Customers are happy.

And somewhere in the back of the mind, a thought appears:

“One day, this could be worth something.”

That is usually when founders start thinking about exits.

Unfortunately, that is also when it is often too late.

Because exits do not reward effort.

They reward transferable value.

And transferable value is not built at the end of the journey.

It is designed into the business long before anyone talks about selling.

The most common misunderstanding about exits

An exit strategy is widely misunderstood.

Many founders see it as:

• a decision to sell

• a loss of commitment

• a future problem

• something you only need when growth slows

In reality, an exit strategy is none of those things.

An exit strategy is simply this:

A deliberate plan to transition ownership at maximum value, with minimum disruption.

Nothing more.

Nothing less.

It is not about leaving.

It is about building something that could be left.

The analogy I often use is a parachute.

You do not put it on when you are already falling.

You pack it early, test it, and trust that it will work under pressure.

Most founders do the opposite.

They build heroically, personally, and emotionally…then ask the market to treat the business like an asset.

Markets don’t reward that.

Why buyers don’t pay for hard work

Every founder works hard.

Buyers know this.

They expect it.

What they do not pay for is effort.

They pay for:

• predictability

• continuity

• independence from the founder

• systems that survive stress

• leadership depth

• repeatable economics

From a buyer’s perspective, effort is a risk indicator.

If the business needs the founder’s constant presence, judgment, and relationships to function, the value is fragile.

And fragility is discounted.

There is one uncomfortable rule that determines almost every exit outcome:

If the business cannot run without you, it is not an asset.

It is a job with overhead.

This is not a judgment.

It is a valuation reality.

Why every founder needs an exit lens (even if they never sell)

The irony is that exit thinking improves businesses even when no exit happens.

Founders who build with an exit lens gain three advantages early.

1. Clarity of decision-making

Exit thinking forces a shift in questions.

Instead of asking:“Can we do this?”

You start asking:“Does this increase transferability?”

That single filter changes:

• pricing decisions

• hiring priorities

• product design

• customer selection

• growth strategy

Noise reduces.

Focus improves.

2. Investor and lender confidence

Capital prefers businesses with an endgame.

Not because investors want founders gone, but because an endgame demands discipline.

Businesses designed for exit usually have:

• cleaner reporting

• stronger governance

• clearer leadership accountability

• fewer emotional decisions

That lowers risk.

Lower risk increases valuation.

3. Sustainable growth without burnout

Growth without exit thinking stretches founders.

Growth with exit thinking strengthens the organisation.

The business stops expanding by absorbing stress personally and starts scaling through systems, leadership, and structure.

That is when founders regain control instead of losing it.

The three phases every successful exit passes through

High-quality exits are rarely accidental.

They follow a pattern.

Phase 1: Preparation (often 18–24 months or more)

This is where value is actually built.

It includes:

• credible, understandable financial reporting

• documented systems and processes

• reduced founder dependency

• a clear narrative around revenue, margin, and growth drivers

This phase feels unglamorous.

But it is where multiples are earned.

Every unresolved dependency here becomes a discount later.

Phase 2: Negotiation (typically 6–8 months)

Negotiations are not won by persuasion.

They are won by optionality.

Strong exits are characterised by:

• multiple buyer conversations

• competitive tension

• time pressure on buyers, not founders

• clarity on price, structure, and non-negotiables

Interest without choice is not leverage.

Phase 3: Execution (often 4–6 months)

Execution rewards discipline.

This is where preparation is tested.

Buyers are not only evaluating numbers.

They are asking a silent question:

“Will this business still work when the founder steps back?”

If the answer feels uncertain, value leaks quickly.

Succession is not replacement. It is valuation

Succession planning is often misunderstood as replacing the founder.

That is not the point.

The point is removing single points of failure.

Succession proves:

• continuity of leadership

• stability of decision-making

• resilience of culture

• independence of operations

This is why succession is not an HR topic.

It is valuation engineering.

Businesses with leadership depth are trusted.

Trusted businesses command premiums.

Why founders resist exit thinking

Most founders do not avoid exit planning because they are careless.

They avoid it because it challenges identity.

Exit thinking forces uncomfortable questions:

• What actually creates value here?

• What only works because I am personally involved?

• What would break if I stepped away for six months?

These are not technical questions.

They are personal ones.

But founders who face them early gain something rare:

Optionality.

Not pressure to sell.

Freedom to choose.

Fail. Pivot. Scale. The exit cycle hiding in plain sight

Every meaningful exit follows the same underlying cycle.

Fail Acknowledge what is not transferable today.

Pivot Redesign structure, leadership, systems, and incentives.

Scale Grow what no longer depends on you.

This is not a slogan.

It is the operating cycle behind every durable business.

Final reflection

Most founders do not miss great exits because they lacked ambition.

They miss them because they waited too long to build something transferable.

The paradox is simple:

The earlier you plan for an exit, the more freedom you gain while building.

Not because you are leaving.

But because you are finally building something that could survive without you.

That is when businesses stop being exhausting.

And start becoming valuable.

—

Matteo TuriChartered Accountant (ACCA) | CFO | Board Director

Creator of The Exponential Blueprint

Author of Fail. Pivot. Scale.

About me:

I’m Matteo Turi — CFO, Board Director and creator of the High Valuation Triangle, a system designed to level up businesses with investors.

For nearly 30 years I’ve helped companies across 12+ countries fix cashflow, scale internationally, design valuation strategy and raise capital (over $500M funded).

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