If you think of venture investment as a three-part cycle—finding a deal, managing a deal and finally “monetizing” or exiting from the deal—then what is the most difficult step in that process? While critical to success, the first part—the decision to invest—is the easiest. Even if you miss a good opportunity, another one will emerge. Managing the deal is the most time-consuming part and requires the most work. But often the trickiest part of the cycle is the last: knowing the right time to sell.

If the art of the exit is just as challenging, if not more so, than the art of investing, what can be done? Here are three strategies that might help:

1. Minimize the risk and need to sell. Invest in assets with resounding long-term value and therefore very long hold periods. Buy assets that have sound cash flow and, at least in theory, have “hold forever” potential.

2. Remember why you liked the investment in the first place. When you see core elements of a business change, or when you notice its customers getting tired, it’s probably time to exit. A good friend, who also happens to be one of the smartest investors I know, tells me that he always writes down the reasons why he’s making an investment. When you do that, you can look back and learn from poor investment choices.

3. Follow your contrarian instincts. Some of the most successful investors look at opportunities when others are looking elsewhere. The art of the exit is similar: If lots of people are buying, it may be time to consider selling. As some of my former Harvard Business School professors have observed, the time to get out of something is when everyone else from your graduating class wants to get in.

These are trying and volatile times for private and public company investors. And there’s no simple formula for determining exactly when you should exit a company. But amateur and professional investors alike should balance their workloads and opt for more insights on selling.

Anthony Tjan is chief executive, managing partner and founder of Cue Ball, a venture and early growth equity firm investing in the information media and consumer sectors.