Business Startup – Full Time or Part Time?
Many potential entrepreneurs have a hard time deciding whether starting a business
part-time or full-time makes the most sense for them. On the one hand, dedicating
yourself full-time to a startup seems like it would give your idea the best chance
of success. On the other hand, starting out part-time allows you to keep your regular
job while testing your business idea. The best option for you depends on a number
of factors and the weight you give the advantages and disadvantages of starting out
full-time or part-time.
Full-Time Startup
The advantages of starting up your business full-time are obvious. Without the responsibilities
of another job, you are able to commit your full attention and time to the startup,
which is likely to shorten the time until your business is up, running, and making
money. Since you are relying on your business taking off to provide you with income,
you will be highly motivated to make good decisions and have extra incentive to succeed
(especially if failure to launch means you have to go back to working for others!).
If you need to seek outside investors, your willingness to risk taking on your idea
full-time will give you credibility with them. They will be more likely to take a
risk on entrepreneurs who are willing to take on significant risk themselves!
Starting out full-time gives you the time to comprehensively plan all aspects of
your business. You are available during regular work hours on either coast to talk
with suppliers, advertisers, trade associations and anyone else with information
you need to make the best plan. You are able to spend more time networking and researching
the industry so that you fully understand the opportunities and threats you can expect
to encounter. The extra time and dedicated focus also make it easier to change direction
if you realize the barriers to starting your particular idea are too great or if
you identify better startup opportunities along the way.
The disadvantages of starting out full-time mostly involve the increased risk. Without
a separate income, it can be difficult to get your business off the ground, especially
given that startups tend to take twice as long and cost twice as much as you originally
expect! You need to have enough cash on hand to cover your personal existence during
the planning phase and are more likely to need outside financing (even if just a
few thousand dollars) to launch your idea. If it takes longer than expected to start
making sales (which it almost always does), desperation can lead to bad decisions
and knee-jerk reactions that produce less profitable outcomes. In an ideal world,
you could start your business full-time with enough working capital to sustain you
for twice as long as you think it will take to get your idea in motion. That way,
you have the breathing room to make the best decisions for the long-term success
of your business idea.
Part-Time Startup
Starting your business part-time can be frustrating as it takes longer to get off
the ground, but the advantages can outweigh the irritation. Most entrepreneurs that
work on a business part-time do so because they are still working a full-time job
for someone else. That steady income can relieve a lot of pressure, allowing you
to take your time to find the best answers to every startup issue and possibly self-fund
the entire startup. Working on your idea part-time reduces your risk all around.
If you discover during your planning that you need to modify your idea or completely
change direction in order for your business to succeed, it is easier to do so without
significant loss. If you need more time to save up or raise the capital needed to
finance your idea, you still have your regular paycheck to fall back on. Once your
business is up and running, you can build your customer base until the business is
profitable enough to replace your regular job before you commit to the business full-time.
The downside of starting your business on a part-time basis is that it can be more
difficult and take much longer to get your idea off the ground. Your attention is
pulled in different directions, especially if you have personal obligations to attend
to outside of your regular work hours. It can be difficult to adjust to working a
job and a half because often it seems like all of your time is spent working. The
remedy, of course, is to manage your time well and schedule enough hours per week
to work on your idea. But when you know you have the paycheck coming in whether you
work on your business or not, it can be easy to become distracted or slack off. Be
sure not to work on your business idea during your regular job hours -- you won't
want your employees taking your time to work on other things, so show the same respect
for your current boss.
Another difficulty that entrepreneurs often experience in starting a business part-time
is balancing the responsibilities once the venture is up and running. For any business,
there are growing pains -- periods during which you have to shuffle priorities and
decide whether to hire some help in order to meet the demands of your growing business.
If you are already working full-time, these periods can be even more stressful because
the time you have to dedicate to the business is limited. Many entrepreneurs find
themselves pulling the occasional all-nighter, outsourcing some tasks, or hiring
an employee sooner than planned.
Get Started!
Some entrepreneurs are unable to dedicate the hours to work on their business idea
even part-time, instead starting up on a spare time basis. This can work out, as
long as you are able to commit time consistently, at least a few hours per week to
developing your business. Periodic startups -- where the entrepreneurs does a little
work on an idea, ignores it for a few months, then puts in a few more hours, etc.
-- are less successful. The marketplace changes so rapidly that any more than a few
weeks out of the loop can make what you know obsolete. Spare time startups can be
very successful, however. Remember that just 3 hours per week of work for one year
adds up to nearly a month of full-time hours!
Starting your own business is a huge endeavor that takes quite a bit of time and
energy. Deciding whether to jump in full-time or not can be a difficult choice in
some cases, but for others the right decision is obvious. Whatever you choose to
do, be sure to develop and use a time-management system that works for you and ensure
that the time you spend working on your idea is productive. If you are serious about
asserting your independence, you will find the time to make your idea into reality!
About the Author
LaunchX.com is dedicated to training entrepreneurs to turn their good ideas into
great companies. The LaunchX System provides step-by-step education in the mindset
and skill set entrepreneurs need to succeed. Our program includes intensive seminar
training, key business software, and specialized workbooks that teach you the fundamental
skills you need to achieve your financial and worklife goals through entrepreneurship.
Register today for our introductory course and see what LaunchX can do for you!
Contents copyright © 2009-2011 by LaunchX LLC. Permission granted to reprint this
article in its entirety provided that the “About the Author” section and all hyperlinks
are included.
