When to Quit Your Job and Start a Business

Posted on Mar 27, 2012

The answer to your popular question probably depends on your situation and the kind of business you’re planning to run. Many entrepreneurs start pursuing a venture in the evenings and on weekends: Think freelance service providers and home-based crafters whose product lines catch on and develop a following large enough to justify their full-time attention.

  Others plunge directly into full-time entrepreneurship, because they can’t afford to be distracted by a day job and need to demonstrate their commitment to their business concept.

  Experts, too, are divided on the answer to your question. One camp strongly advocates testing the waters of entrepreneurship and then easing gradually into having your business support you full-time. The other says you can’t start a successful business without a strong commitment from the start.

  Therese Prentice, a women’s business coach in New York, reflects the common wisdom that would-be entrepreneurs should not leave their day jobs until they have proved their business ideas will pan out. She says she never advises clients to preemptively resign their full-time employment, even if they have capital lined up to start a business.

  “You have to test everything, so allow yourself the space to plan, do, and review, while you still have full-time employment,” she says. “The confidence you desire will be reinforced as you have success with testing your ideas and gaining high-paying clients.” She suggests that aspiring entrepreneurs wait until their new venture is generating about two-thirds of their full-time income before they quit their day jobs.

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