The 5 Steps to Build a Business Worth Buying (Even If You’re Not Selling)

In this episode of Built to Sell | Built to Buy, business coach and entrepreneur Sam Penny unpacks the exact steps to unlock the full potential of your business — whether you're preparing to scale, step back, or eventually sell.

If you’re stuck in the weeds, still wearing all the hats, and wondering why your business hasn’t hit the next level, this is the blueprint. Sam reveals how to escape survival mode and instead design a business that’s scalable, transferable, and built to thrive without you.

Learn how to:

• Define a clear and measurable vision for your business
• Systemise operations for freedom and scale
• Delegate recurring tasks to increase enterprise value
• Leverage value multipliers like recurring revenue and IP
• Assess your business like a buyer to unlock hidden growth
• Use a 90-day sprint to break inertia and build momentum

Whether you’re aiming to increase business valuation, reduce owner dependency, or get your time and sanity back — this episode gives you the tools, mindset, and frameworks to do it.

🔗 Get the free Business Sale Readiness Report: sampenny.com/readiness
📅 Book a 1:1 Strategy Call: sampenny.com/strategy

Key Takeaways:

• Most businesses are underbuilt, not broken
• You can't grow if you're the bottleneck
• Systems turn chaos into consistency — and time freedom
• Multipliers like recurring revenue and IP drive valuation
• Thinking like a buyer helps you build like a leader
• 90-day sprints force clarity and execution
• Being the least necessary person is the ultimate goal

🔥 Sound Bites:

• “Your business isn’t stuck. It’s just underbuilt.”
• “The market pays for transferability, not effort.”
• “Systemisation isn’t a cost — it’s a time creator.”
• “A business that works without you is one that’s truly worth buying.”

🕰️ Chapters:

00:00 – Why Most Businesses Stay Small
03:20 – What Does True Potential Look Like?
06:45 – The Hidden Cost of Owner Dependence
10:15 – From Operator to Architect: Your New Role
14:00 – Systemise or Stay Stuck
18:40 – Value Multipliers That Boost Valuation
23:10 – How Buyers Score Your Business (Even If You’re Not Selling)
27:45 – The 90-Day Sprint That Changes Everything
32:00 – The Mechanics of Freedom & Scale
35:00 – How to Get Your Business Sale Ready