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It’s always best to start at the end!
Why start at the beginning as grandma told you to do when you can start at the end doing things backward and better? In making bold moves toward sweet financial freedom that comes with entrepreneurial success, you’ll undoubtedly hear from good-intentioned advisors saying entrepreneurs should just get started taking one step at a time.
As a U.S. Army veteran, I’d encourage you to do an “about face” soldier and head in the opposite direction. While it is certainly important to begin — to bring the dream to fruition — the most brilliant business owners intentionally start at the end, strategically establishing a clear path to make their big vision a reality. Below, I share my “backward approach” — three steps propelling the rebels, underdogs and allies in business straight to the top.
Related: How A Departure From Conventional Wisdom Can Lead to Success
Step 1: Visualize the end goal
Some people are happy building a mom-and-pop business. Others want to be the next Elon Musk. To each their own. However, as sports icon Yogi Berra once stated, “If you don’t know where you are going, you might end up somewhere else.”
Hard lessons learned by starting at the beginning:
When I got married the first time, I was 20 years old. We were starting at the beginning, ready to serve in the Army and spend time with friends. Four years later, I was a divorced single mother of two kids. If I had visualized the end goal, this is not what I had in mind. Thankfully, the universe granted me a second chance, and this time, I started with the end goal of a beautiful family in mind. Now, I’ve been happily remarried for over 21 years. My son is a law student, my daughter is a veterinary medicine student, and I enjoy hiking frequently in the California sun. I can confirm that a backward approach is golden!
Successful outcomes with a backward approach:
Jim Cragg, a 30-year military veteran, envisioned saving his home in the event of a natural disaster. He devised a plan in advance of the 2025 Palisades fire in Los Angeles. As a result, when wildfires began raging and upending people’s lives, Cragg, who had taken time to thoughtfully establish his exit strategy, attached revolving garden sprinklers and hoses around his property before making a getaway. As a result of visualizing his end goal to save prized possessions, when the time arose to execute, he was ready. He took action, weathered formidable firestorms and achieved his end goal. His backward approach was monumental to persevere through extreme hardship and achieve immensely valuable outcomes.
In business, it pays to visualize the end goal:
Avoiding a backward approach leads to the majority of U.S. business owners not ending up where they want to be. Only 17% of business owners have created a written exit plan, and 80% eventually list their business for sale but fail to find a buyer. Planning the exit is a vital aspect of creating a valuable legacy. At my company, Legalucy, we help business owners plan their exit strategy from day one. In addition, we secured Pam Marrone, one of approximately 22 women-led companies to have led her company to an IPO, as our own exit strategies advisor.
Marrone taught Legalucy that exit strategies should be tailored to a company’s growth potential and market positioning, and while some businesses aim for niche markets with plans to sell to larger companies within a few years, others, like her own ventures, target broader markets with a longer timeline for acquisition or IPO. Marrone highlighted that investors typically expect a defined exit timeline, often tied to revenue milestones.
She advised us to identify potential acquirers and include this information in our business plan to demonstrate foresight and strategic planning. This approach not only satisfies investor inquiries; it also helps to maintain a clear vision for the company’s future trajectory. Like Legalucy, you should take a backward approach from day one to ensure you go where you want to go.
Related: The How-To: Building An Exit Strategy For Your Business (Even Before You Start)
Step 2: Reverse engineer milestones
Rebels, underdogs and allies in business prioritize reverse engineering to ensure winning outcomes. At Legalucy, for example, we reverse engineer financial models, technology rollout plans and pitch decks. The milestones we select allow for entrepreneurial flexibility as we persevere toward clear objectives.
Our exit strategies advisor also highlighted the importance of preparing for various scenarios, noting that “timing and luck are very much involved.” Marrone’s company developed a three-year IPO plan based on advice from bankers who outlined five key milestones. These objectives were beneficial for the business regardless of the ultimate exit strategy. By breaking down these goals into quarterly actionable steps, Marrone’s team created a roadmap that enhanced the company’s value to appeal to potential acquirers or public market investors. This method of reverse engineering milestones not only prepares a company for exit opportunities but also drives overall business growth and success.
Step 3: Leverage branding, resources and teammates to execute
After visualizing the end goal and planning milestones, you’ll be positioned to execute the plan by leveraging personal branding, partnerships and cultivating a superstar team. Strategically establishing your personal brand early on and aligning it with the company’s vision enhances credibility to attract investors. Solidifying partnerships, a board of advisors and a team with complementary skillsets lays a solid foundation for growth.
For example, I grew up in a small, rural town with little economic opportunity. As a teen, I lived with my grandmother. Although I wanted to be a lawyer, the status quo limited me to becoming a cheerleader, pageant queen or caregiver. To establish my personal brand as a breakthrough leader, I enlisted in the U.S. Army First Infantry Division and served active duty overseas. I was a contestant on NBC’s Fear Factor with Joe Rogan, and I moved to Silicon Valley and became a finance litigator and tech founder.
As a result of the personal branding I created, my company — attracting opportunities to work with Mark Lemley, the top cited IP legal scholar worldwide; Eddie Hartman, co-founder of Legalzoom; Eren Bali, founder of edtech unicorn, Udemy; and Adeo Ressi, founder of Founder Institute and former roommate of Elon Musk, as we built the #1 pre-lawyer legal platform on the market. In 2024, we were highlighted by The Legaltech Fund as a top early-stage Gen AI company.
As Legalucy’s exit strategies advisor shared, “Everything I did personally always was benefiting the company.” This approach proved crucial to Marrone’s IPO success, demonstrating how a founder’s personal brand can significantly impact a company’s market position.
Building a strong team is also vital, with a focus on cultural alignment and shared values. Marrone emphasized the importance of being “mission-driven” and advised us to interview candidates for culture fit first. She recommended establishing clear company values early and conducting regular assessments. This proactive approach helps prevent “cultural drift” and ensures the organization remains aligned with mission and goals. By prioritizing personal branding, strong resources and team building, businesses can create a solid foundation for executing milestones and driving long-term success.
Related: 5 Effective Ways to Build a Winning Team
Persevere to win!
For rebels, underdogs and allies in business, success is not random — it’s a strategic process of intentional design. By taking a backward approach, you’ll crystallize the end goal, reverse engineer milestones and deliberately build your personal brand, partnerships and team to execute. By doing so, you’ll effectively transform your purple comets vision into reality. Entrepreneurs with the audacity to believe they can succeed and who execute and persevere, ultimately win gold.
