The 30% Mistake: Why Most Founders Leave Money on the Table with Linda Hamilton
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In this episode of The Exit: Linda Hamilton, a Certified Exit Planning Advisor and longtime CPA, shares practical strategies for business owners preparing for a future exit, emphasizing the importance of readiness, clean financials, and documented systems.
Key Takeaways:
Exit Planning is About Optionality, Not Just Selling
Many business owners avoid thinking about exits too early, but Linda argues that preparing early builds resilience and optionality, not just a path to sell.
The Cost of Not Preparing
Citing a 30% valuation gap between male and female founders, Linda underscores how lack of preparation—especially around clean books, contracts, and succession—can significantly impact sale outcomes.
Readiness vs. Attractiveness
Linda encourages using assessments to evaluate both how attractive your business is to a buyer and how ready you are to exit. She shares a story of a founder nearly derailing a deal by not securing key employee agreements.
Key Indicators of Exit-Readiness - Critical elements include:
Clean, audited financials
Signed client/vendor contracts
Repeatable and documented systems
Cash flow visibility and control over AR/AP
Transferability & Systemology
As a certified systemologist, Linda highlights the importance of mapping your customer journey and operational systems to ensure the business can run without you—critical for buyer confidence and deal value.
Building a Support Team
Successful exits rely on coordinated advisors: CPAs, attorneys, brokers, and wealth advisors. A SIPA-certified exit planner often acts as the “quarterback” to align everyone's efforts with the owner’s goals.
Timing & Purpose
Timing an exit is personal. Many owners regret selling too soon because they lack a post-exit purpose. Linda encourages planning for life after the sale as part of the overall exit strategy.
Empowering Female Founders
Linda advocates for financial fluency and readiness assessments to help women negotiate from a position of strength. Confidence comes from awareness—knowing your numbers, your risks, and your value.
Final Advice: Linda wishes she had done her own business readiness assessments earlier in her career, highlighting how early preparation can influence smarter long-term decisions.
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Linda Hamilton is a CPA and CEPA, (Certified Exit Planning Advisor) who is passionate about helping women business owners achieve financial fluency to grow, profit & scale. Linda founded Grow Profit Scale™, a coaching and mastermind program designed to empower women entrepreneurs with financial fluency, profit amplification, and scalable business strategies. In addition to Grow Profit Scale, Linda is also the founder of Linda A. Hamilton CPA LLC, where Linda and her team provide accounting, tax, and strategic financial planning services. With over 35 years as a CPA, CGMA, CEPA, and SYSTEMologist®, she has helped countless business owners develop strong financial systems, improve profitability, and plan for successful exits.
Linda on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindahamiltoncpa/
Websites: https://www.growprofitscale.com/
- https://www.lahcpas.com/
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The Exit—Presented By Flippa: A 30-minute podcast featuring expert entrepreneurs who have been there and done it. The Exit talks to operators who have bought and sold a business. You’ll learn how they did it, why they did it, and get exposure to the world of exits, a world occupied by a small few, but accessible to many. To listen to the podcast or get daily listing updates, click on flippa.com/the-exit-podcast/
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