I hope Beth doesn’t mind, but I’m posting her question because many of you may have the same questions.
Hi Carol,
I just wanted to applaud you for making the decision to quit your job. I know that it was stressing you. Are you going to do your online business full-time now, or get another full-time J-O-B, or a part-time job and work hard on your own business? I am sure that all your readers are wondering what you are planning to do. This could motivate quite a few of your readers to follow their passions, instead of staying in situations that aren’t doing them their highest good. I know I am far happier now that I am living my virtues and dropping the activities that were literally making me unhealthy and unhappy. You have the computer smarts and writing skills and other talents that it takes to develop a successful online business Keep up the good work! Beth in Colorado*
Wow, Beth asks some heavy questions here. While it’s one thing to make a decision for myself, it’s quite another to make the same recommendation for someone else.
You might be tempted to think that if I jumped out of the plane without a parachute, then you could too. I mean, who quits their job without have either another job lined up, or a thriving business?
In my case, I’ve been working on this for years. But working a full time job has made it difficult to do many of the things I need to do to make my business successful. I believe that with the time to do the things I want to do in my business, I could be successful in a relatively short amount of time.
But I don’t want anyone to think that they can start with no experience today, and make a living in a short amount of time. There is only one way to do that – and it costs thousands of dollars. So if you don’t have thousands of dollars that you can invest in a professional team to get your business up and running for you – you’ll have to start off like the rest of us – doing what you can in the time you have, and continually learning and trying things.
Some people can do it faster than others. I can’t write sales copy very well, and I can’t afford a high paid copywriter. My technical skills are maybe a 5 on a scale of 1-10. It’s taken me a long time to work past these issues. But I’m pretty good at other things.
Some people can write sales letters that will make you drool. Some people can whip together a website using all of the latest greats tools. Some people are naturally good at networking. If you have any of these skills and you’re not putting them to use, shame on you!
But you’re still not going to do it overnight. Please don’t believe that.
So, to answer Beth’s question – I’m going to give it my best shot. I’m not even going to take the time to think about ‘what if it doesn’t work.’
Does it feel good to follow my heart? You bet.
Am I scared? Yeah, a little.
Would I recommend following your dreams? Absolutely, But I highly suggest having a better safety net. I felt like I had to do this. But I wouldn’t recommend it for everyone.
I would recommend that you work towards your goal a little bit every single day. That I highly recommend. Then, when the time is right – jump.
I’m still at the job for another week, and it hasn’t been pleasant. And then I’ve spent every available minute trying to get the computer running OK, and make some strides in the business plan.
It’s been kind of like having a gun to your head. Make it work, or die.
I haven’t eaten well, which of course, doesn’t help. I need to listen to my own advice 😉 Getting sick would be a really bad idea right now!
But the house is clean. You might think that’s weird, but it helps keep the stress levels down. My home is calm and soothing. Everyone says so.
I’m going to take a lot of time to play around with my daughter this weekend. We’re both off Monday, so our weekend will be Sunday and Monday. And since it’s probably the last really nice weekend we’ll have – I’m going to make sure to take advantage of it and spend some time getting rejuvenated and ready for the next battle. The next couple of weeks promise to be quite harrowing.
I haven’t told anyone except my sister. I can’t afford to listen to any negative talk right now – and I don’t want my daughter to worry. Watch, this will be the one time she reads the blog…
I’ll have some new stuff to show you soon. In the meantime – wish me luck!
We’ll talk soon –
Carole