Are you a person who got into business ownership without actually having business knowledge, business acumen, or any type of mentors to help guide you to be a business owner? Oftentimes as a business owner, we’re thrown into the mix. We start doing something because, we didn’t like how other people were doing it. We wanted to practice or do things in a particular way that other people were holding us back from doing. And especially when we’re in a service-based business, let’s say veterinary, for instance.
What happens is that we often get sucked into being the technician and the rest of the business from an entrepreneurial standpoint, from being a manager, either can get neglected or there’s very little of experience on knowing how to handle those things. There’s a core group of people that should be supporting you as a business owner to make sure that you are running a very healthy business and a very healthy personal financial life.
And oftentimes people will do these things on their own. They are not actually seeking out counsel to support them and either they’re neglecting it or they’re doing it sort of shot seat to where it’s not producing what they thought it would be there. They are, are they making a smart financial decision around that?
And the core people that you should be having as a business owner is one is there as your accountant, your accountant could be someone who is actually filing your taxes, helping you do projections for your taxes, knowing what you should be paying in for estimates, but also they might accompany that with strategic planning where they can be able to help vision out your business to where, hey, I wanna grow this, I wanna grow the profits, I wanna turn this into a masterpiece.
The majority of accountants out there do not provide the strategic complaining component. There are some that actually do exist who could be useful. Then you’ve got an attorney, you got a personal attorney, you’ve got a business attorney.
You’ve got what they call lenders. So you might need to have like a lending relationship. So it could be for like a line of credit, could be for expansions. It could be for buying new locations. Then you’ve also got what they call your commercial insurance agent. Someone that can help make sure that you’re secured properly with the right insurance coverages. You could have an investment advisor, someone that’s supporting with regards to a 401k who’s also being able to support other options for the practice.
You’ve got a personal financial advisor, someone who can actually help you make smart financial decisions. You’ve got a certified exit planner, and a certified exit planner is someone who can actually coordinate a lot of things together for you.
And a certified exit planner is not just someone who you go to when you’re ready to sell. There’s someone that you would start working with from the birth of an idea of starting a business to eventually wanting to exit out and then be able to retire and maintain a specific lifestyle and pass on your legacy in the most efficient manner.
So they could be a combination of many different people that go out there and get the further knowledge, which our team has spent the time to go out there to get that knowledge to provide that extra component for practice owners out there. And then there’s another person you can bring into the mix, which we call a consultant. Someone that can get really into the murkiness of the weeds.
Oftentimes you can find an accountant that can support that as well. And then there’s a plethora of other people, but your core team, when you look at the people you want to have, an accountant, an attorney, lender, a commercial insurance person, and at the same time, maybe a consultant along with a certified exit planner, are your core team that you’d want to concentrate on to make sure that you’re making sound, smart financial decisions and coordinating to create some harmony between your business and your personal finances, so that way at the end of the day, you’re not stuck having to worry and depend very heavily on the sale of your business for retirement.
If you want to chat more about this and you have some questions, or if you’re looking to take things to that next level or second set of eyes, reach out and we’d be happy to chat with you.
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Many practice owners never set out to be entrepreneurs. They simply wanted the freedom to do things their way. But once you own a business, the responsibility grows quickly—and without the right guidance, critical areas of the business and your personal finances can get overlooked.
That’s why building the right support team matters. At a minimum, every business owner should have an accountant, attorney, lender, commercial insurance agent, consultant, personal financial advisor, and a certified exit planner. Together, these professionals help you navigate taxes, protect your assets, secure financing, plan for growth, and prepare for the day you want to exit your business.
The truth is, too many owners try to figure this out on their own. But when your business and personal finances are aligned through the right team, you gain confidence, free up time, and ensure your long-term financial security. If you don’t already have these people in your corner, now is the time to start building your team.
This material is intended for general public use. By providing this content, Park Avenue Securities LLC and your financial representative are not undertaking to provide investment advice or make a recommendation for a specific individual or situation, or to otherwise act in a fiduciary capacity. Guardian, its subsidiaries, agents, and employees do not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. Consult your tax, legal, or accounting professional regarding your individual situation. Tom is a Registered Representative and Financial Advisor of Park Avenue Securities LLC (PAS). Securities products and advisory services offered through PAS, member FINRA, SIPC. Financial Representative of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America® (Guardian), New York, NY. PAS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Guardian. Florida Veterinary Advisors and The Next Step Planning Group are not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian. California Insurance License #0K80141. AR Insurance License #15823672. Florida Veterinary Advisors is not registered in any state or with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as a Registered Investment Advisor. The individuals associated with Florida Veterinary Advisors do not maintain specialized licenses or qualifications for the financial services provided to veterinary professionals. 7989827.1 Exp 5/27