You run a business. You’re self-made. You’ve made tough decisions, you’ve taken risks. It hurts to consider the idea of allowing some investor off the street to step into your shoes as owner; someone with no previous history with your customers, your employees, your vendors, your products & services. It just feels wrong.

“The kids will take it over and they’ll deal with it.” After all, who would turn down the opportunity of a lifetime, to step into the enterprise that provided the charmed life you and your children have enjoyed? Why would they choose any other path, right?

While the answers to these questions may seem self-evident to you, your assumptions are worth exploring.