I have been an exit planner for the better part of a decade.

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I am an ice hockey tragic and I love the film Miracle. I hope this does not sound harsh, but it simply isn't possible to have a "Gold Medal Exit" if you do not put in a gold medal preparation. ​If you do however, the podium finish is well within your reach. 

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I'll be blunt. The below is really difficult and is not for everyone. But a decade's experience in the topic makes me think overpreparedness is massively superior to underpreparedness. 

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The Gold Medal Exit process:

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1. Value Shock: The panic that accompanies the realisation that a business is not worth as much as initially thought.

2. Value Ideation: Brainstorming ways to close the value gap. Often accompanied by fresh enthusiasm for having been brave enough to confront the Value Shock (01).

3. Value Target: Abandoning the notion of "getting maximum value" which creates deal friction and often just alienates buyers. Instead, adopting a target price (or more accurately proceeds net of tax and transaction costs!) and accepting responsibility for everything needed to justify that number.

4. Value Control: Overcoming the "bystander problem" by appointing a Value Controller to drive toward the Value Target (03). Learn about the Value Controller Aptitude Test (VCAT) here.  

5. Value Surge: Giving the Value Controller (04) the resources and authority to execute the Value Target plan (03). Incremental, steady progress toward it.

6. Value Unlock: Using the right mechanisms to harvest that value you built, smoothly, predictably.