I am a business owner, planning for retirement alongside my clients, many of whom are also entrepreneurs. You could say I am surrounded by the choices and impacts of decisions entrepreneurs make when it comes to their own retirement planning.

And in 14 or so years of this, I’ve seen it all.
I often get asked what special considerations should be involved in retirement planning for entrepreneurs. In other words, what secrets do successful entrepreneurs know about achieving financial success?
In my professional opinion, successful retirement planning for entrepreneurs follows these 5 guiding principles:
1. Start with the End in Mind
Your business is your empire, so you need to understand its prospects and its limitations–most importantly; when and how will you make your exit?
If you are already running a business, you should know your business type, and what that means about the potential ways you can exit or sell the business. This will inform the planning and saving you need to do to retire successfully.