Friday, November 28, 2008

Time to Quit Your Day Job?

It's a scary thought. You may find yourself facing this decision at some point in the life of your online business. So how do you know if you're ready to make the leap and quit your day job? Some things to watch for:

1. Is your business consistently paying you enough to live on? If your business has great months, followed by a dramatic downturn in sales on a regular basis, you will have to do the math to find out if you are making enough money to support yourself without the added income of the extra job. If you find yourself in a situation where you have dedicated yourself full time to job that will not support you, you may end up losing the online business too.

2. Do you want to do this full-time? If you started your business with the ultimate goal of making it a full-time job and your sole source of income, this question is already answered. If you started it for extra income, you will need to decide if this is something you want to do full-time. The step forward in relying on this job may turn it from a fun hobby to a headache. Before you make the leap, decide if this is something you genuinely love to do.

3. Consider your product and the future of your success. If you are selling a product or service for a seasonal or short-term issue (such as a trendy Christmas item or a product that addresses a temporary event) you may want to consider what will happen to your sales once the event or season has passed. There may no longer be a need for your item or service. You obviously would not want to rely on such a projection as a full-time job

4. Is it more work than you will be able to handle, even if you dedicate yourself to it full-time? If this is the case, you are faced with two options: You could quit your day job and work more hours than you'd intended to be able to support the company or you could keep your day job and hire help for your current work load. This is not an ideal position to be in, but it may be a situation you face at one point.

5. If your sales plummet, do you have a back-up plan? You may want to wait until you have money to support yourself for several month in case unforeseen events happen. It also does not hurt to have a few job ideas in mind in case the need arises. Owning a small business is a risk, but it should be a calculated risk.I hope this helps in your decision to quit the day job or not. It is a big step in the life of any small business. Do not go into it without lots of consideration and planning.Full-service car warranty company... buy direct & save... 0% interest!

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