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10 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Quitting Your Job
10 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Quitting Your Job
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When you are first venturing out into the world of becoming a business owner, we are all posed with the question at some stage... when should I quit my job?
For some it’s an obvious and easy decision to make but for others, it’s an extremely difficult one to make and for different reasons. I posted this question inside of a few business groups and got so many different ideals and stories. So if there are so many different opinions, how do you know which one is right?
The thing is, we all have different circumstances so there is no cookie cutter approach to this question BUT I’ve collated all of the advice from hundreds of women and condensed it into 10 questions to ask yourself before throwing in the towel on your day job so to speak.
(1) Do you have enough money to get you through the set up, launch and running of your business? This amount differs for everyone because the cost of launching a business differs, depending on:
- what you’re selling,
- whether you have financial support from a partner, family or friends and
- whether you have dependents.
(2) Are you unhappy at your current job? Sticking around to save more money when it’s killing your soul every day is not the answer. It will show in the quality of work you’re producing or the service you’re offering that you’ve checked out mentally and physically. If you’re being bullied or harassed at work and the employer isn’t doing anything about it, you might want to reconsider your happiness is worth the money they are paying you and seek help from Counsellors to make sure you make a decision that’s best for your health.
(3) Do you even WANT to quit your job? Sometimes we feel like we aren’t a success until we have quit our job and become full time employed within our businesses, but that’s simply not true.
The goal doesn’t need to be to leave your job, if you did want to leave your job. Some want to have a hustle on the side for some extra money or whatever reason and still LOVE their day jobs so don’t want to quit. They may not want the responsibility of being their own boss full time, but are turning their hobbies into businesses to make some extra cash.
For others like me, they want to stay in their day jobs because they are getting something out of it that they Value. For me, I’m around industry leaders and experts so I’m around my mentors AND I am being put through university and learning skills such as accounting, insolvency and business restructuring which Im able to translate into what to do and what not to do for my clients.
Plus, my place of employment have adopted flexible working which means it’s flexible in location, working hours and situations and they fully support my business and promote it where they can. If you’re getting this kind of value out of your employment, I don’t blame you for not wanting to quit. You can always scale and grow with the help of coaches and hire people to work in your business while you work from a management position.
(4) Do you want to supplement your income before quitting your job? For some people, security comes in the form of knowing you can supplement your income. If this is you, there is nothing wrong with this approach, as long as your job isn’t preventing you from reaching this target. You might want to consider scaling back to part time before quitting so you can take on extra revenue without being handicapped.
(5) Have you validated your business yet? Going all in and quitting your job before you have even validated your business might not be the best move. Some people have been able to make it work, but not after learning VERY QUICKLY that they needed to change their business and suffered a lot of unnecessary stress.
(6) Are you going to be made redundant? If you’re about to be made redundant, don’t quit! You will miss out on a payout of all of your entitlements. Instead, get your payout and use the notice period to put a plan into place to make your business a success.
(7) Do you know how you’re going to attract customers? If you don’t know the answer to this question, the answer to this question should be your focus, not quitting. I make sure all of my clients know how they are going to attract customers BEFORE they quit their job and if this is something you need help with, send me an email and we can work on this together.
(8) Have you checked your employment contract? I see too many people quitting without even checking their employment contract to see if there is a clause in there that either:
(a) says all business ideas and IP developed while employed is owned by the employer or
(b) has a restraint of trade clause which prohibits the employee from launching a business within a certain period of time after quitting, in a certain geographical location.
You should always check your employment contract and see the advice of a lawyer before quitting. Bond University have a free legal clinic which offers advice for free to eligible applicants which will include advice on your employment contract. I’ll put the details of the Bond Law Clinic in the snow notes.
(9) Have you got a backup plan? Some people are ok with not having a backup plan and are happy to burn the boats so to speak and go all in but if this makes you anxious, then have a backup plan.
(10) What does your gut tell you? Do some meditation and listen to your intuition always.
I hope you have found this blog of value to your current circumstances. I'd love to hear your thoughts and considerations below in the comments. Also feel free to share this blog with your social networks so others can consider these questions before they quit their jobs. If you're ready to take the plunge and go all in on your business, you've got this and be sure to reach out if you need any assistance.
To your ongoing success.
Jade xx
AUG 26, 2019
