Aspiring entrepreneurs all around the globe often find themselves in a disastrous scenario – broke, unmotivated, and stuck, all after quitting their day job to pursue their dreams.
The danger here is that culture makes that scenario a legendary, admirable action – quitting your day job to pursue bigger and better things. Society respects the individuals who “take a leap of faith” in their careers and quit their day jobs to pursue their dreams, and actually devalues the workers who remain working hard behind a desk, day in and day out.
Unfortunately, that system is broken, misleading, and its perceived glamour is oftentimes what prevents dreams from happening altogether.
Don’t Quit Your Day Job – Yet
You probably aren’t going to find that advice in a lot of other places. It’s not popular, and it’s barely even conventional anymore. There are simply too many stories about the courageous individuals who left everything to follow their passions and became wildly successful. What those stories don’t mention are the waves of workers who quit their jobs and didn’t find success.
Instead, I’m going to propose an alternative tactic, one that probably isn’t popular or awe-inspiring. Keep your day job, for now. You’ll need it for later.
Your day job can actually be one of your greatest partners in reaching your dreams. It’s a solid foundation for supporting yourself and paying the bills while you work feverishly on your dreams after sundown. Bridging the gap between your day job and your dream job will happen organically this way. Sure, once you quit, you’d probably be more motivated to work hard and accomplish what needs to be done – however, you can still accomplish a lot while working 40 hours a week.
Don’t Become the Office Slacker Either
This post isn’t encouraging you to become a mediocre, minimal-work worker who only gets the bare minimum done throughout the day. This practice can also bey very detrimental to your attitude after work; if you’re a lazy, unmotivated, and preoccupied worker throughout the day, you’ll inevitably carry those patterns to your home office where you write and dream. Workers who continue to work with excellence and stay productive during a day job will also inevitably carry those traits with them after work.
Entrepreneurs from every walk of life have found success in day jobs while working for their dream jobs. Robert Saman, CLO and secretary of STEC is an excellent example of a worker who started small and rose to the top with an astounding work ethic and integrity. If you’re working at a small business and dream of quitting to pursue bigger and better things, you’re not alone. But instead of finding yourself unable to pay the bills and loading enormous stress on yourself, adopt an attitude like Saman’s and countless other workers who chose to remain excellent in work.
Don’t quit your day job, yet. Perhaps down the road, when you have enough savings, a solid business plan after you quit, and the support and encouragement of peers and family, quitting will become a viable option. Don’t get stuck working at home with no money coming in and not getting anything done.
Article contributed by Jenna Smith
