One other component of your small business needs to be protected: you. Do you want your business continue to operate after you've shuffled off this mortal coil? If the plan is to shut it down, how will that happen? How will ongoing ownership issues be determined? Who's going to run the show?

These are complicated issues that any small-business owner should discuss with a qualified estate planner to resolve, and any protégés being groomed to take over when you're gone need to be aware of the plans well in advance. Software such as steps an individual through basic estate planning. It's a serious subject, but tackling the creation of a will and a succession plan while you're young and healthy is far better than waiting until you're lying in a hospital bed. Make it a priority to create a continuity plan (or a dissolution plan, if you aren't going to pass the business along to an heir), and revisit it annually to ensure that it's up to snuff.