Every business ends one of three ways. Decide which.
It closes, it sells, or it gets passed down. Most owners never choose. Before the Clock Decides is the playbook for the ones who do.
Most owners never choose their ending. Time chooses for them.
Health shifts. Energy fades. A key employee leaves. A surprise offer shows up before you are ready. Then the business that was meant to be your greatest asset becomes your biggest risk. Each ending can be planned for, if you start before the clock does.
Close
Winding down on your terms, with the value extracted and the people taken care of, instead of a forced shutdown.
Sell
Knowing your true value, growing what buyers pay for, and going to market when you are ready, not when you have to.
Pass it on
Handing over the keys to family or a team without handing over your income, your name or your peace of mind.
Inside the book
This is not theory. It is the playbook owners use when they want to finish strong.
- Know your true value, not the number you have been telling yourself
- Grow what buyers actually pay for
- Build an owner-optional business that runs with or without you
- Avoid the unplanned exit that destroys wealth and limits choices
- Design a timeline that protects your legacy, your family and your freedom
Read this now… before the clock decides for you. From the back cover
What readers say
A wake-up call every business owner needs before it's too late. Matt S.
Amazon review
It will open your eyes to the money that can be left on the table. Amazon customer
Amazon review
Clear actions that make a big difference. Paul J.
Amazon review
Indecision is still a decision. Stacy Brown
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Clarity and control for exiting entrepreneurs. Amazon customer
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Life can be unexpected, but we can still prepare well for the unexpected. Elgin D.
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Mike Steward
Mike Steward has sat across the table from hundreds of owners at the moment that matters most. As a licensed business broker, certified business coach and founder of Vision Fox Business Advisors, he has seen good exits, painful ones, and the preventable ones in between. He wrote Before the Clock Decides so owners can choose their ending instead of leaving it to time.
Latest articles
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Most owners know the number they want to get for the business. Few know what that number will produce every month after the sale. That is the gap.…
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Oct 12, 2026
Two Owners, One Business, No Agreement: Exit Planning for Business Partners
Two owners build a business together. They share the risk. They split the work. They make decisions across the same table for years. Then the goals change. One…
Decide before the clock does.
Hardcover, paperback and Kindle. Order today and start the conversation this week — with your partners, your family, or yourself.