Quote:
Originally Posted by CTinline-six
I have a side business that I've been running for about 10 years now. My advice is if you want to start your own business, don't quit your day job and go balls to the wall until you feel it is the right time to transition. Start your new business as a side gig, then build it up until you are confident enough your idea will work out and you can quit your day job. Running a business is very exciting, but it's also a 24/7 commitment.
For me, I could probably do my own thing as a primary source of income, but then again I'd never be able to put it down and relax, I'd be working 24/7. Having the option of doing that if something happened with my day job, and using the business as a supplemental income when I want to has worked out really well.
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rmtt
This is exactly what I do/did...although I don't take on the amount of extra business on the side that I used to anymore. For about 5 years, I was making the equivalent of my full time job. Biggest thing that kept me from transitioning into it full time was I knew I would have to put a lot of hours into it to break away from my benefit package at my full time job.
But it served its purpose. I put a kid through school with no student loans, and I paid off all of my debt. After that...I took less and less work as I valued my personal time more.
But for around 8 years...I was working all the time. I didn't ask for any extra work, but "word of mouth" brought enough to me that I didn't have to look for it.
|
This is about where I hope to take this one.
Went to a VC mixer the other day. Got some good advice and some good contacts. Next steps - file provisional patent, get boilerplate NDA, complete Y-combinator startup school.