If you are a budding entrepreneur and you are looking to make the move from your current job to running your own business there may be some reasons why leaving your job is not the best idea. In fact I have come up with 2 reasons that keeping your day job may make sense.
There are things at a job that are tough to deal with at times. Annoying co-workers, work that doesn’t always satisfy us and a pain in ass boss are just a few of the annoyances that we face on a day-to-day basis. Despite all that, there are some benefits to having a day job.
The first benefit goes back to the “Sex and Cash Theory” that I talked about in my recent review of Hugh McLeod’s book, Ignore Everybody. To refresh, the sex and cash theory essentially states that there are some activities that we do that pay the bills and there are some activities that we engage in that keep our creative juices flowing.
Hugh gives examples of actors who will work on a cool indie flick that gets rave reviews and then later that year appear in a forgettable big budget film. The indie flick gives the actor props but the big budget flick gets the actor paid. The key is in finding and maintaining that balance. Having a day job as well as a creative outlet on the side makes sense for a lot of working professionals who feel that they don’t get a chance to stretch their talent while working in a cubicle. For many aspiring entrepreneurs, this is a great way to build something you care about while not sacrificing everything on a business idea that you are not sure will work.
I previously mentioned annoying co-workers as a reason to have a creative outlet outside of your job. Ironically enough, these same co-workers (OK maybe not the annoying ones) are the same reason why you may want to keep your day job. Starting your own business, especially in the first few years is a lonely proposition.
For myself as an extrovert, it has been the toughest thing about leaving corporate America. I miss the friendships and the camaraderie that go along with working on a project with a team and working hard to ensure that the project is successful and then going out afterwards to have a beer to blow off some steam. Talking about the stupid thing your boss did or about the annoying co-worker that doesn’t understand why you never invite him for a beer because he doesn’t realize that he is kind of a douche.
These are just a couple of reasons why you may consider keeping your job while you start your business idea. This is only acceptable provided that you are actually working in a career that is worthwhile financially and utilizes some of your skills. I would caution against being the starving actor who waits tables their whole lives waiting for their big break. That seems sexy in the beginning but in the end is just uncool.
Keeping your day job isn’t something you have to do but it’s good to talk about the fact that you do have options. Some business coaches would have you believe that you must “burn the ship” in order to be successful in business and this is just not always the case.