It is not necessary to burn all the bridges behind you in order to successfully start your business. If you keep your current job, it will help kill two birds with one stone. You will not only have a stable source of income, but also feel much more confident on the way to entrepreneurship.
However, it is important to maintain a balance and understand how you can and should behave, and which actions are strictly prohibited.
This is the perfect model. Especially in a difficult period when you will be taking your first steps as an entrepreneur. The last thing you need in such a situation is to think about unpaid bills and accumulating debts. The main job will give you financial independence, which will help put the business on its feet.
If you have a good relationship and your business does not become a competitor for the company in which you work, you can offer the management to invest, become a client or partner. However, before that, it does not hurt to consult with a lawyer who will help you and your boss discuss the terms and details of such cooperation.
But be careful. A failure in business or the refusal of your superiors to support you can affect your current working relationship. Think carefully about whether you would like to work with your boss on your own project and how the boss might react to your attempts to create a business outside of your main job.
This is especially important if it contains a clause about inventions and objects of intellectual property created in connection with the performance of work duties. If there is such an item, then everything that the employee came up with while working in the company will belong to her. But even if you work without a contract, this does not mean that the issue has been resolved. Specify this point in the job description. You can ask for it, for example, from an HR manager.
Allocate a certain amount from the first profit of your business, which will be useful in the future if you still decide to quit. In addition, do not forget to make a clear budget and regularly count the income and expenses of your company. This will allow you not to spend too much.
The deferred money can be invested so that they bring profit and provide a reliable safety cushion after dismissal.
The main work and parallel development of your business leave little time for other things. Determine what is really important to you. Consult with business partners, family and loved ones.
After that, make a list of all the hobbies and activities for which you will be able to reduce time or even remove them from your daily routine. This will free up the days, hours and minutes needed to build a business.
Any business that requires round—the-clock monitoring is a bad idea if you want to keep your job. For example, opening your own store will leave little time for parallel professional activity. Such a business project can work only if you devote yourself to the cause from the very beginning or if you have a reliable partner. Otherwise, the company risks failing in the market, and you — incur serious losses.
Even if you need to send just one short message, it can be regarded as using the company's resources to develop your own business, that is, for personal purposes. And such accusations have serious legal consequences.
In addition, the employer may have access to your work PC data. In this case, it will not be difficult for him to read the correspondence in your personal mail, if you entered it from a corporate laptop. It is better to be safe and use not only personal accounts, but also a personal computer.
Such a discussion can also be attributed to the category "business development during the performance of work duties".
In addition, there is a chance that not everyone will like that you are doing your business in parallel with your main job. One of the colleagues can tell the management about this even before you decide to discuss this issue yourself.
This rule should also be applied in the case of customers and suppliers of the company where you work. You should not offer them your business ideas in the workplace.
A new business goes through a variety of cycles, among them both incredible successes and serious defeats. Therefore, the first victories are not a reason to leave work right away, especially if business can still be combined with it.
For the stability of the company, it is important to find real, willing to pay customers, and then spend several months gradually building up the customer base. Your income should not just cover all the necessary expenses, but significantly exceed them. Only then can you think about dismissal and full immersion in the affairs of your company.
Own business as a side job can be quite successful. But if you do not plan to be a passive investor, but want to become an active head of the company, you will need all your time and full participation.
Don't be afraid to leave your old job and become a full-time entrepreneur. The main thing is to correctly assess the risks and think carefully before such an important step.
