Not everyone who has a side hustle hates their job. Well, some do hate it and wish their side gig could one day become their full-time job.
Some just do it to add a little zest in their life. So they stay in their jobs for years and treat their side gig as what it is — a hobby.
If you’re one of those who can’t wait to leave your day job, when is it a good time to do it? Here are some things to guide you in your decision.
Are you willing to put in extra hours to make your side gig into a main gig?
Side hustles are often great when it’s complemented by your main job. When it becomes your main focus, you might need to spend more time to gain momentum.
It’s not easy to turn something you do on the side into something you spend a majority of your time with.
For example, writing for 2 hours a day seems fun and doable for you. But when you leave your job to focus on writing 8 to 10 hours a day, it suddenly becomes a chore. You might even start to hate the thing you love to do.
How to avoid that?
If you don’t know if it’s something you’d like to do full time, try it before you quit your job. Take 2 to 4 weeks of leave from your current day job, and work on your side gig every day.
You can get a rough idea of how turning your side gig into your full-time job will play out.
Do you have savings?
When you leave your day job, your entire expenses now depend on your new gig. You could experience 3 months to a year without income. Can you still pay for your daily necessities?
It’s best to leave only when you can live off the income from your side hustle. But I understand how exhausting it can be to do the work that you hate while working to build your side income.
It’s hard and tiring.
At your day job, you feel miserable. You can’t wait to go home and start passionately working on your project.
Yeah, I know. I’ve been there.
Good news is, if you have the savings to sustain your daily necessities for the next 6 to 12 months, you don’t need your day job. It’s also best if you learn to cut down on expenses so your savings can last you longer.
What happens when you leave and don’t have enough savings?
Well, I’ve been there as well. Here’s what happened:
- You stress out about money
- Contemplate whether to start looking for another job
- Start doubting your every decision
- Believe you made a mistake in trying to pursue your dream
- More self-doubt
- Spend more time finding a job
In any case, you are putting more time and effort into doing everything but your side hustle. You’ll be too caught up in trying to survive your day-to-day life, you stop focusing on building your hustle.
Don’t make the same mistake I did. Only leave your day job when you have sufficient savings or leave when your side hustle is earning you a sustainable monthly income.
. . .
Everyone’s journey is different. Mine has been difficult and filled with many trials & errors. I hope yours will be better but even if the road is tough, don’t give up. Remember why you chose this path.
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This post was previously published on The Startup and is republished here with permission from the author.
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