Emotional Intelligence is important in a business succession plan

Hello, thank you for joining me today. Today we're going to talk about why Emotional Intelligence is important when you're selling your business. So, selling your business is a significant life event that involves more than just financial considerations and it's a journey that encompasses emotions, relationships, and negotiations.

Emotional Intelligence plays a crucial role in navigating this complex process so first I want to help you to understand what is Emotional Intelligence. Emotional Intelligence refers to the ability to perceive control and evaluate emotions. In the context of selling your business it involves empathizing with potential buyers, managing personal emotions, which there will be a lot of and maintaining clear communication with all involved. The role of Emotional Intelligence in managing your emotions when you're selling  a business is that selling a business can trigger a lot of emotions from anxiety to excitement and high Emotional Intelligence enables business owners to manage those feelings while you're maintaining composure and clarity during the sales process. Also, during the process there needs to be a certain amount of empathy which is also a part of Emotional Intelligence. Understanding and empathizing with buyers is key to the successful negotiation and that also plays into when the purchase has been done paperwork wise especially if you're selling to a family member or a someone who works for you. So, empathy is huge. I experienced it with the team that bought my business. At some point I told them that I was really struggling with the emotions of selling the business and they listened to me very empathetically but they also said you know it's emotional for us too. We're trying to navigate being leaders and also navigate that and be respectful of the fact that you own the business. So  empathy played very well between the four of us and I think that goes back to open communication. We all did the Emotional Intelligence assessment and realized that we were high in Emotional Intelligence which I think made us communicate better and understand. We had the empathy we had all  the self-awareness that type of thing.  

Emotional Intelligence also helps you build strong interpersonal connections with your buyers so  for me it was a little bit different because they knew me, they worked in the business I had been their boss owned the business but  let's say that somebody buys your business that is from the outside. You've decided to go down that path and you need to be able to have a strong rapport with them to get through the process and make sure that your emotions don't get in the way. There's going to be conflicts and no matter who you sell to, there will be conflicts. Emotional Intelligence will help you to get through  those conflicts. Conflict resolution, there's a lot of pieces there and you want to make sure that you handle it calmly and constructively, that there's no arguments.  

I'm sure you've heard stories, as I have, about people that come to the end of the process and there's a lot of arguments and they end up not liking each other and it didn't go well. My plan was that was not going to happen, that we were going to like each other, that we were not going to have arguments, and I was going to exit with a good relationship with the people that bought my business. That was one of my key components of selling. So, you need to have a positive transition. It doesn't help anybody, including the business and the employees that are there if things don't go well. If things get emotional and you can't handle the different things that are come up during the transition.  A lot of times, like me,  business owners are concerned about preserving their legacy  after the sale and Emotional Intelligence helps in planning a transition that honors the past while welcoming the leadership and new ideas so think about that. That was a huge piece for me and I think it is for anybody that  has owned their business for a long time is you have to honor the past but you have to realize that new leadership has their own ideas and ways of doing things too and I think Emotional Intelligence  helps that.

Then also, like I said, ongoing relationships. So I  have lunch with the people that bought my business. We text. We have that relationship, and they know that they can count on me for advice or for anything that they need or just to say Hey how are you doing. I'm interested in them as business owners and also them as people and they feel the same about me. I think that they're still interested in me and what I have going on and they have respect for my legacy.

Emotional Intelligence is a huge piece of business succession both on your part and on the people that are buying your business and I would suggest that an Emotional Intelligence assessment and   maybe even some coaching in areas that are not the strongest for you and your team might be a good way to help the transition. If you're in the middle of the transition and you see someone that is just struggling with the team or struggling, it could be low Emotional Intelligence so might be good to get an assessment.

So, if you look at my website www.Hellbenttosell.com and yes, I did say Hell Bent To Sell because we're all hellbent to sell I talk about my succession journey and I also have information on there about Emotional Intelligence. I'm an Emotional Intelligence certified coach so I can administer the assessment and then help you to diagnose what that looks like and what the path looks like for your Emotional Intelligence. So, check it out and don't hesitate to contact me or to engage in the information on the website and I think this is a huge part of business succession for me it certainly was. Thank you for today and I wish you luck on your journey let me know how I can help.