5 Steps to Prepare for Quitting your 9-5 to Become an Entrepreneur

In the early 1970’s, only one-third of mothers worked, whereas now the scenario has drastically changed.

Today, many of us continue in our careers after having a baby. Interestingly, most of us are doing better for ourselves, yet are faced with the common dilemma of choosing between our career and kids.

A baby brings us joy and happiness and our job gives us external achievements and validation of our success, as well as financial security to enjoy life.

Raising a child is an important job, and many mums feel like they are missing out on quality time with their kids when they go out to work.

This thought results in feelings of guilt and resentment.

As a result, many mums have thought of leaving their 9-5 job and starting their own business, but are naturally afraid to leave the security of the income.

Breaking out of this mindset can be challenging for some but it is possible if you are clear on your “why” and want to take care of your kids whilst fulfilling your other passion.

Today, more and more women are fulfilling their dreams to be an entrepreneur and leave the jobs they don’t love.

While, setting up a new business can be risky, with the right choices, success and balance can be achieved.

Here are 5 steps to prepare for quitting your 9-5 to become an entrepreneur:

1. Market Research
Once you’ve determined a niche for your business idea, it is easier to plan a strategy.

However, before delving deep into your plans, researching about your products or services is a necessary step.

It will help you to not only understand more about how much demand there is and who else may be doing something similar but also gain insights to add value to your business proposition and let you differentiate yourself from your competition.

2. Finances
Finances play a big role while starting your business. So, planning your finances will help you gain peace of mind in the long run.

You will need to consider how you will manage finances during the transition period from employee to entrepreneur and beyond as you may not make money in your business immediately.

Do you have any savings? If you have a partner who works, can you manage on one income for a little while? Can you borrow any money? Can you juggle your 9-5 job whilst starting up your new venture?

It is best to assess the amount of money you need up front and plan accordingly.

This is often the point when women decide it is all too hard and it is much easier to just stick to their 9-5 secure jobs.

This is fear lurking its ugly head and shadowing doubt on your dreams.

Just remember why you are considering this change. Remember you may have a lot to gain and you need to stay focused on that.

3. Time
Setting up your business should leave you with the opportunity to achieve better life balance.

However, depending on your financial situation, until your business starts growing, you might have to run it on evenings and weekends.

This requires working mothers to commit a lot more of their time away from their family.

On one hand, if you had your own business you might get to spend a lot of time with your baby, but on the other hand, during the startup stage, you may have to work hard and completely commit to your business.

Again, this is when you must remember your “why” and understand that you may need to feel some short-term pain to achieve the long-term gain.

4. Advice
Being new in the business world may present you with some new challenges.

Therefore, it is a great idea to seek professional advice from organisations designed to aid new businesses. You can get help in critical areas like finances, legal matter, planning etc.

Also, there are business coaches who can save you hours of time by not only helping you with the business aspects of your new venture but also helping you to address any fears or limiting beliefs that may be holding you back.

5. Planning
Now that you’ve made it to the final step, you must determine when you are going to quit your day job and launch your new venture.

The risk of running out of money is always present if you haven’t saved up, but by now you have considered your finances and you are ready to take a leap of faith.

Based on my experience and the experience of my clients you will get the best outcome if you take the plunge after developing a detailed plan.

Planning minimizes uncertainty.

When you have a written plan and a schedule, it’s like maintaining an ongoing “to-do” list for your business.

Completing and checking off the items on your plan will help motivate you and show how you are tracking against the overall schedule.

This will also ensure your launch date is met and not delayed indefinitely.

Just keep in mind, a new business does take time to develop, so with proper planning you can achieve the best of both worlds, you can thrive in the entrepreneurial world, whilst spending time with your kids.

Own Your Goal!

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