Death of a Business – Part 1
There are hundreds upon hundreds of books on how to start a business, grow a business, succeed in business, business motivation, and getting rich – but, in all my searching, there are very few books on shutting down a business. I can count on one hand the books I found on business failure, and half of those were out of print.
No one wants to talk about it, think about it, or write about it – with good reason! When you start a business, having to close the business is not – and should not – even be on your radar.
But it happens. Happens to 9 out of 10 businesses. Even happened to me.
And I’ll tell you right out – it sucks. A terrible time. But it happens, and life goes on. So, I’ve decided to write about it. For the 90% of business owners that have to go through it, and have to face it alone. Because, let me tell you – if you think it’s lonely at the top – it’s even lonelier at the bottom.
I’m going to write about my experience with business failure. And I know, I shouldn’t call it a “failure”. But, when it happens, that’s exactly how it feels. You have your employees that believed in you, now looking for a new job. You have family that suffered with you, friends that helped you, vendors who trusted you, customers that needed you – and now you’ve let them all down.
Believe me, I’ve been there. My experiences might not exactly match yours, but I’ve talked to enough people that went through (or are now going through) the same thing that basically, what happens, is the same for everyone. The feelings, the reactions, the never ending calls, bills piling up, people loosing faith in you – everyone goes through basically the same trials.
But, dear readers, don’t give up. It is a long, dark road – but there is light at the end of the tunnel, as they say.
For this series, I am going to assume that your business is nearing (or at) the end of its days. You’ve stuck with it as long as you could, called in every favor, begged every customer, pushed every sale – but realize the end might just be near. Collection agencies are pounding at your door, you can not place any orders for inventory, you are selling leftover parts on Ebay, and you can not pay your employees any more. You can’t sleep at night, and you dread going into work every day.
I know, it’s a terrible place to be. I’ll share with you my experience, and you will know you are not alone. If you need help, have questions, or need someone to listen, drop me a line. Find my contact link on the left side of the page, near the top.
There is much information to discuss regarding the end of a business, so I’ve decided to break it up into multiple parts. So check back every few days or so – or – add this site to your newsfeed reader, or put your email into the “subscribe” box at the top left of the page, and I’ll be sure to let you know when I post another section.
If you are in the unfortunate position of having to close a business, I feel for you. But don’t worry – it’ll work out. As my dad keeps reminding me – “there is no debtors prison anymore”.
