Now What?

What happens after you sell your business?

Last Saturday, I had a four-hour lunch with a former client, who had just sold the restaurant she’d built and ran for 20 years. Day in, day out. Double shifts, broken equipment, staff drama, sleepless nights.

I felt her pain deeply, because I’ve known it personally too. That bone-tired, soul-tired place where even success exhausts you. She worked until she was sick of it.

And three months ago, thanks to a successful transaction we completed together, she became free. For the first two months, she did exactly what she’d dreamed of: She traveled. She slept in. She relaxed. She lived the “dreamy daily life,” as she called it.

And then came the quiet: “Now what?”

We talked about our daily routines. Exercises. Healthy diet. Where we invest our time, energy, and money. A few exciting business ideas bounced back and forth on the table as well. Everything else but the past.

Then, toward the end of our chat, she said: “I’m thinking of working as a bartender in a restaurant on the beach. The one where I stopped once, years ago. I loved the ocean view so much.”

Wow, what a beautiful vision with a practical plan. I love it.

Truthfully, after closing a long chapter of our life, we may feel a little lost, out of track, or lonely. Then we can’t help wondering: “Now what?”

Here’s what I’ve learned. Ask yourself this:
— What did I always want to do before, but couldn’t? Could I do it now?
— If I couldn’t do them all… possible to do a tiny bit, one at a time?

We are starting a brand-new chapter now, and anything is possible. So,
— Take a 10-minute walk. Feel the ground beneath your feet.
–Read 2 pages of a book that you always wanted to finish.
–Take a trip to a town nearby and check it off your list.
–Try to do one thing a day that challenges you—like standing still with your eyes closed, then slowly picking up your left foot, even for one second.

Gosh, the list just keeps going on and on. Without knowing it, your new chapter is filling up with all kinds of new things and interesting stories that you haven’t had the chance to experience before.

So, what is the view in your vision nowadays?