Quit your job to be your own boss? | BYOB – 1 / 1

So you wanna quit your job and start a freelancing business ?

I know how it feels, and today we’re going to discuss about the good and bad reasons to make such a move.

hello, I’m your host Kaycinho, I’m a digital alchemist, and if you wonder what a Digital Alchemist is, you’ll find a video just about that, right here.

This episode, is episode n°1 of of a module dedicated to the decision phase of starting a business, so I invite you to check this playlist.

And by the way, this module is the first module of a course dedicated to take you from the burning desire to become your own boss to actually launching your business. So if you want access to the full course (videos will be added until the course is complete) by clicking here.

Now back to our topic, if you’re reading this post, I suppose there is a good chance that you are being stuck between a rock and hard place, trying to decide whether or not you should quit your job. Maybe you are scared to move on while at the same time eager to change your life on your own terms.

I’ve been there too!

Sometimes it happens just after you’ve had a very bad day at work : it may be your colleagues, it may be your boss… Whatever the reason, I remember this feeling like “Wow, this is getting old, I’m getting tired of this stuff man!”.

Quit your job: which motivation?

But this was NOT my main motivator.

Now that is a key moment, because if your sole reason to quit your job and go freelance is the fact that you don’t like your boss or colleagues, well, let me get this straight : depending on what you plan on doing, instead of having one boss you might end up with having a dozen or more if you are not prepared.

And don’t get me wrong : I love freelancing, but I see many people getting into freelancing as an escape to problems that will actually not get solved by quitting your 9-to-5 job, and by that I mean :

• dealing with not-so-nice people (whether your boss or a client)
• dealing with work overload
• dealing with long shifts
• dealing with crazy deadlines

In my case, my boss was not the main reason for me to decide going the freelance route, although he had a minor part in it.

I had always wanted a business, but I was not from a business-minded family, so it was a longer process for me and you know how it works… Years go by, and you keep dreaming about a different life but it just won’t happen if you don’t act on it. You want to quit your job … but you just don’t.

Quit your job: a burning desire?

And we humans have a tendency to not act when we’re comfortable.

So as long as I was comfortable I kept postponing and procrastinating.

But then a series of events, made my comfortable life not so comfortable anymore.

But that was not all, for example :

• the burning desire to be able to push my own ideas without restriction kept growing in me
• I didn’t like my environment that much anymore
• I felt the urge to create
• I just wanted to feel better about my life

Quit your job: the trigger

And one day, I decided that things HAD to change. I remember that day very well: at the time, I had decided to go to work by train because I had almost had an accident falling asleep while driving late at night.

So, I was waiting for my train, and you know when you start commuting by train, at one point you start seeing the same people every day and even if you never talk to them, they are part of your day to day routine.

So that day I was waiting for my train, and there was this guy that was always standing at the same spot on the platform.

He had that precision to always be at the exact spot where the train’s door would stop. I don’t know how he did it, but he did.

He looked older than he actually was (I know because I’d heard his age in a conversation one day) and he always looked like this was the worst day of his life. To cut a long story short, from the conversations I overheard, it was obvious he hated his job, and consequently, probably his life too.

So that day, something terrible happened: well at least terrible for him! The train didn’t stop where he expected, so the door was not in front of him but like 2 meters past him.

The man was furious. Literally furious. Nobody dared talking to him, not even the other grumpy people that would usually talk about how bad their day was.

So I stood there, thinking about my life and how I never wanted to experience that.

Quit your job: from desire to action

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not judging that man. I was probably on my way to become just like that. I’m actually thankful because that was the day I made a decision.

I decided I wanted to at least do all I could to change what I didn’t like about my life.

Things did not move right away, because, as we will see, some things take time and you just got to deal with it, but at least the foundation was laid.

As I said other circumstances accelerated the process, until the conditions were met for a change.

Quit your job: the key points

So, what are the key points when making a decision and what should you do next?

That’s precisely what will be talking about in the next episode in the series, so just check this playlist.

So, I hope that this post helped you identify why you are willing to change your professional life, and if after identify your core reasons you still want to quit your job, I invite you to stick around the blog and the Youtube channel because I got a lot more of these coming down your way!

Now can you relate to my experience, or did you have a completely different one? Let me know in the comments.

If you watch the companion video and if you like it, please give it a thumbs up, as it really helps growing the channel and if you know someone that could benefit from it, I’m going to ask you if you’d like to share it now, because let’s face it, there are so many things to do in a day that if you don’t do it now you’ll probably forget.

Now if you want to brand, market and grow your business it in the Digital Age make sure you subscribe to my email newsletter so that you never miss your share of digital alchemy and tips, tools, services and case studies that can help you grow your business online.

So I hope to see you around here or on the Youtube channel, and in the meantime, do you know what time it is? I think you do, it’s time to invest in your success!