Ready to ditch the 9-to-5? Read this advice first

You know you’ve thought about it: What if you could just quit your job and support yourself and your family doing something you love? Maybe you already have a hobby or a side hustle that could be a full-time gig, or maybe your business idea is still in your head.  

Every week, Sanjay Parekh talks to entrepreneurs and small business owners on the Side Hustle to Small Business Podcast, powered by Hiscox. He talks to people who are living the dream of owning their own business doing something they love. They talk about what went right, what could have gone better, and what they learned. They also offer advice for those who are considering making the leap from employee to entrepreneur.  

Here’s what these experienced business owners would tell someone else who’s just starting out on the same path.  

“Understand what you’re good at”

Erin Sims and John Mills founded Connect-Empower, a company that helps senior citizens and those who care for them navigate the maze of healthcare providers and services. Erin gives some great advice to prospective entrepreneurs: “I would say really understand what you’re good at. And what would you be okay passing on and outsourcing for somebody else to do? Have that plan.”

John agrees, and takes it a step further, suggesting that it’s important to consider what you really want to do. “I think it’s about, what is it you truly like to do in life? Do you want to be controlled by somebody else or would you like to be in control of your own time?”

📢 Related: The most successful small business ideas for 2024

“Do your research”

Shawnti Refuge took her own experience with guided journaling and started Shawnti Refuge Journals. Her business offers self-care journals to those who want to enrich their emotional, physical, mental, spiritual and financial well-being. Shawnti admits she never intended to go into business, but now that she has, she wants to pass on some of what she’s learned.  

“Do your research on whatever market you’re trying to enter. Don’t fly by the seat of your pants – have a plan in place. Get a mentor, get a support system, but vet those people. [Anybody can say] they’re a creator or an influencer. That [means] nothing. Followers don’t mean sales. Ask for receipts.”

📢 Related: How to write a brilliant business plan: 8 steps to success

“Start slow”

Starting your business slowly, while you still have a full-time job too, can give you some time to work out the kinks before going all in. Just ask Ethan King, a 20-year serial entrepreneur and founder of stuff4GREEKS, Zeus’ Closet, and other businesses along the way.  

“A lot of times we can glamorize entrepreneurship, especially in the social media, TikTok, Instagram world,” Ethan says. “And we get the impression that, ‘Oh, just take the leap and then go all in on your new business and it’ll all work out. I actually had a full-time job and I did my side business when I wasn’t at work. So, I devoted all my off time to that, but outside of work hours. And I did that for about a year and a half until my business got to the point where I realized, well, if I devote more energy to it now, I actually have some consistency of sales coming in.  

“So now I know that I can take the leap. And if I apply those 8 to 10 hours every day that I was giving to my job, [and] apply it to my business. I see a path now where I could make it grow. But it wasn’t just a cold leap into the new business.”

“Find your tribe”

Joe Koufman is the founder and CEO of Setup, which matches marketing agencies with established brands. Joe recommends finding a support network, because entrepreneurship doesn’t have that built in group of colleagues you find as an employee.  

“When you’re an employee at a company, you have peers that you can relyon to find support and guidance and advice,” Joe says. “When you start your own company, it could be very, very lonely because you no longer have peers that maybe do different functions than you, but at least are at the same level as you, and you can talk through issues. So you’ve got to find your tribe of people that share a common pursuit.”  

Joe recommends finding an existing networking group if you can. “There’s an international nonprofit called EO, the Entrepreneurs Organization, [which has] served as a defacto group of peers where I can bounce off problems, challenges, those kinds of things. Vistage is another kind of network like that. Don’t think you have to be doing it all by yourself. And when you feel that loneliness, seek some relationships.  

“It is worth it”

Nivia Lopez could be considered a ‘multipreneur’ – she started out freelancing as a virtual assistant, then began a digital marketing business, and does video editing as a side hustle. She went through a few different ideas in search of the business that would give her more time with her family, and her advice is to keep going, because it’s not easy, but it is worth it.  

“I would tell them that even though it is really hard, and not super easy like it may look on social media, it is still very worth it,” says Nivia. “[Y]ou can make a lot of money online. It’s very true and I’ve seen it happen. But it is a lot of work. I think it’s worth it if you have those goals of having that freedom of time and ability to do whatever you want with your time.”

Tune in for more advice

📌 Ready to learn more? Listen to what these and other entrepreneurs have learned from their journey, tune into the Side Hustle to Small Business podcast. Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.