Quitting your job first isn’t the best idea…

Another lesson I would like to pass on is something that is probably obvious to everyone else, but is something I did not do.  The smart way to start a business at home is to start it on nights and weekends, and only quit your day job once you are somewhat successful, and are making enough money to pay the bills. 

I unfortunately did not listen to that advice, and quit my job before I even started a business!  I was unhappy at my job, and quit first, and then started the business.  Forgetting about not having the money coming in anymore, my biggest issue was with stress.

Even though I had the money to pay the bills without working for a while, I was just so stressed all of the time wanting the business to succeed NOW, that it made it even harder to get things done.  When you’re sitting in front of a computer thinking that you MUST succeed right now, the extra stress really does make it harder to get work done. 

 Once I took the pressure off, it was a lot easier to think more clearly, and start getting things done.  And even if you think the business will take off right away, that is not always the case.  If you first have the business earning some income, and then you quit your job, you are much more likely to succeed as you will already be doing somewhat well before you quit, so you can then devote all of your time to making the business even better, instead of starting it from scratch after you quit.  I’m sure that it’s obvious to most people…but considering I did it that way, I’m sure others might be tempted to also!