Don’t Quit Your Day Job and Other Mistakes I Made

OK, I’ll admit it. I’ve made dozens (maybe hundreds!) of mistakes with my business.

I never went to business school, and much of the expertise I have now was learned through trial and error over many years. Yes, I made tons of gains, but I stumbled just as often.

Now that I’m 6 years into my online business journey, I can look back and see the mistakes I made when I was a total newbie. And one of my biggest blunders was quitting my day job as a book editor before my business had grown enough to replace that income.

Don’t fall for the hype!

There’s a lot of peer pressure out there telling new business owners that they’re not “real” entrepreneurs until they quit their day jobs.

That’s not true, and it creates unneeded stress on someone who’s just taking the first steps. I would know, and those first few months were a struggle. The lack of instant money and immediate fame made me feel like a total failure.

Here’s the main reason why you should NOT quit your day job when you start your own business: You need to learn time management first.

Having a day job means that other people dictate how you use your time. You don’t even have to think about it!

Your manager tells you when your report is due. Your clients give you their deadlines. Your work hours are set by the corporate headquarters. You have very little control over how your minutes are allocated.

That all changes when you start your own business. It’s your chance to step up and be the leader of your time.

I made the mistake of thinking that I’d naturally manage my time well on my own, but it took me nearly 6 months to get into a groove and stop sitting around watching TV in my pajamas.

A day job forces you to make every minute count.

For example, if you only have 30 minutes per day to work on your business, you’ll do the tasks that lead to sales and growth, not goofing off.

So you’ll promote your freebie, send your emails, and publish your blog posts. Scrolling through social media and watching funny animal videos can wait.

Easy Edit: Start using your limited time wisely NOW while your business doesn’t have as many moving parts. Then when you’re a pro at getting things done quickly, you’ll know that you won’t waste the extra time when you quit your day job.

Ready to build your business the right way?

For even more tips for avoiding common mistakes, watch the video class “10 Things I Wish I Knew When I Started My Business” in the Life Editor Clubhouse.

In This Class You’ll Learn

  • What I wish I knew about time management
  • What I wish I knew about money
  • What I wish I knew about other people
  • What I wish I knew about me

Click here to join the Clubhouse.

This post focuses on Step 4 of the Life Editing Process, Rearrange Everything Into a Perfect Flow. For more about life editing and what it can do for you, click here.

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