The TK Advisor -TK Financial Group Ottawa Blog about Life Insurance, Critical Illness Insurance, Wealth Management and Estate Planning

Owning a business forever ?

As a business owner I have built a number of business with no thought of ever selling any of them . Is this a good strategy ? I now have learnt that there should be a exit strategy from the start as it does a number of things for the business as well as the owner . Working with hundreds of clients that own businesses here as well as rest of Canada I have learnt a great deal . As business owners , we invest money , time and sweat equity to build a organization . Having a exit strategy would in my experience make you a more efficient owner and generate higher profits as well as build a more valuable organization . Maybe my book that I have been asked to write will cover some great insights learnt from working with my friends/clients . As the saying goes " start with the end in mind " .

FamIly business is a great business if .......

Beauty of owning a small business is that you get to call your own shots and the bad part of the same opportunity is that often you are often left alone to make hard decisions . Our economy is dependent on family businesses thriving and surviving . Often the business owners find themselves involved in the business that they do not take time to work on the business . A board of advisors is a excellent way to gain valuable much needed assistance to any business . That board has to be objective and look out for the best interest of the organization . Good legal and accounting advice should be the foundation for every family business . Insurance should be a planned event and not a sales exercise . Investment advisor to a family business is a must as often all the money gets plowed back into the business with no diversification . Team approach is best so make sure you have your advisors working together . We are either the quarterback in creating client's plans or simply one of the valuable members of their professional advisory team .

Why should a family business owner sell his business to outsiders ?

As planners we meet many business owners throughout the year who struggle to create a solution to meet their desire to have their business , their baby , continue after they are not able or wish to . Why do we try to plan our business to have a family member to take it over ? Why do we deal with family dynamics like a child in the business and another not ? What happens , when to our surprise , the children want nothing to do with the family business ? Maybe a family business should hire professionals to deal with family issues which are sometimes not evident to the naked eye . Maybe family issues are hard for the parent and child to deal with on their own so they are never dealt with . If family business does not engage in the planning issues around family dynamics I would strongly urge the owners to plan out their exit strategy to get maximum dollars when they sell the business from outsiders !

Integrated Financial Planning !

Who are your members of the financial planning team ? Have they ever met ? Have they ever consider your needs in the BIG picture rather then isolated approach . Legal , Accounting , Insurance , Investment and Banking should be part of your plan . Do you want to know how to put all the integrated planning pieces to meet your objectives ? Call me and we will give you reasons why our approach is the best solution to build a solid financial future . We are your financial architects !

Christmas is a wonderful time to reflect on our lives !

Why chose Christmas to reflect ? Throughout the year we have been busy working and often taking things or people for granted . Life get's in the way . You know what they say , if you want to make God laugh tell him your plans ! For me it was a year of growth , challenges and growing up .Even 53 year old need to grow up ! We need to reflect on our blessings in life and there are many when we start to analyze our life in those wee moments of the night . No regrets just full steam ahead . Love yourself first was a lesson that I am working hard to engrave in my mind . Love the people who helped you in personal life . Appreciate clients that gave you the opportunity to serve them and thank them ! Get rid of resentments and reconnect with old friends as they have been there for you .

Family Business !

There are many family business owners that are looking to pass the business down to the next generation but unfortunately that is not easy to do . Over the last 29 years we have been involved with family businesses where the transfer was a effective one and have also witnessed some that unfortunately did not go well . Why do these transitions fail ? Waiting too long to begin the process . No clear plan . Parents are not prepared to give children control . When treating children in the business and ones outside the element of fair is sometimes confused with equitable . There is no one qualified in helping the family to facilitate the process . Sometimes parents do not want to deal with it and their advisersfail to point out the importance of this process for all parties . We urge you to get a team of advisers that are accustomed in working within a team environment to guide you through the process . We have done this work and it is rewarding to see the stress relief that is created when the work is completed .