Keep the day job and build it on the side...

I'm not going to turn down applause, but building something on the side isn't all peaches-and-cream.

I realize that it's not supposed to be easy to build a successful business. But if it's so hard, why should we make it even harder by pursuing our business every night when our mind is already fatigued from a full day of work?

I'm doing a startup on the side because I have to. I'm not able to take on the risk that comes with quitting my day job, especially in this economy. Especially when I like my day job. However, if I could pursue my startup full time, you better believe I would. In a heartbeat.

I do agree, however, that applause should be withheld until something comes to fruition.

Sorry if this comes across as negative, but I write this as I'm up late writing code instead of sleeping. To all of you would-be entrepreneurs thinking of starting something on the side: go for it! It's fun! :-P

Quitting your job is by no means easy. You'd either have to be willing to take a huge risk if you don't have any savings or you have to plan way ahead to minimize the damaage. Having a spouse and/or kids to support only makes it harder. Sure, quitting your job doesn't mean you've made anything useful but it isn't as easy as the article suggests. For most people, building something on the side requires they give up some other aspect of their personal lives. If someone has found a way to chase their dreams by quitting a job they don't enjoy and keeping their personal lives straight, then I think they deserve some encouragement.

I'm a fan of 37signals and have been reading their blog for years but the tone of their recent posts have gotten strangely negative. Just by applauding someone for quitting their job doesn't mean they're ignoring those that moonlight. I hope this post, 'The Next Generation Bends Over,' and the 'Mojito Island is a Myth' aren't indicative of a new direction for them. Every new post seems to be a defense of their business model.

For every piece of cheap advice, there is an equal and opposite bit of cheap advice.

In this case, "if you're not doing it full time, if you're not fully committed, you always have an easy out. By quitting, and officially dedicating yourself to your new venture, you've given yourself a big incentive to give it your all. It's like the Greeks who burned their ships on the shore" (or something along those lines).

It's like noone here has ever heard of a part time job. I work 25 hours a week and still have 80-90 hours to do whatever I want.

Considering the average startup founder works about 50/hrs a week.. there's plenty of time.

I started out keeping the day job and building on the side. After awhile it gets old and you lose all motivation for the day job. Since moving to working on the startup full time I have never been happier in my life. I wake up every day living the dream and have no plans on looking back. Unfortunately my co-founder is still working a day job, but we are close to getting him working full time on our little project.

I disagree. Quitting a job you've had for several years and supports your current lifestyle is not easy. It is risky and takes a lot of courage. That is why others show support. That support encouraging and valuable to the receiver. Furthermore, applauding someone's decision is pretty easy, too. Certainly easier than quitting your job. So what's the problem?

If I say I am building a business in the evenings, do you feel like there will be much value in a one-time round of applause? Positive effects of your support will be minor, and will wear off long before they affect the outcome of my venture. Unless you're willing to get interested in my project and show support on a regular basis, or at some critical juncture (eg launch) it's just not that big of a deal. I certainly wouldn't find applause useful (in fact if you applaud work that isn't deserving I'll find it harmful). I need criticism, attention, resources, and frequent but pragmatic optimism.

On the other hand, if I say I am quitting my job, that means I am going through a rather dramatic change. Many of the decisions I make and actions I take in the next few days to weeks will make a big difference. A one-time bit of motivation-- other people letting me know I'm not alone and that my decision can really work out for the best-- can be very significant.

The downside of keeping your day job is that you are slow. Recently another start-up lunched my idea as a beta. This really hurts, because I know I've thinking and hacking this similar product for over a year. And they've got some great press, which hurts twice as much.

I've been following this path. I got my first job out of school three years ago and worked on several personal side-projects at home after hours. Earlier this year I finally got to the point in one of my projects that I would either have to quit my day job to apply myself full-time to it, or abandon the idea altogether.

It has been about four months since I quit my day job to pursue this startup, and let me tell you, quitting was not easy. It was a very tough decision and honestly more stressful than it was to get the job in the first place. I don't think I deserve any applause just for foresaking a steady paycheck, but I wouldn't make the blanket statement that it is easy, either.

Finally, I will be launching my startup this week! I am up late making finishing touches to the website. I will be making a "Review my startup" post here on HN when it goes live. I can't wait.

I find it hard enough to be a student and work on projects on the side - I am much more productive in the holidays. I imagine working for 40+ hours a week would be even worse.

It reminds me of the pg essay about looking for funding - when that's what you think about when commuting, in the shower, before falling asleep, you'll lack the focus to continue building. I find my degree has the same effect, and probably most jobs do as well. An exception might be for part-time or menial jobs - I remember one blogger saying that worked 20 hours a week in a coffee shop, and spent all day thinking about what to hack on when they came home.

I work on my start-up after I get home from a full days work. I've been doing this M-F for the last 6+ months, around 2 hours a night. I don't see this as work, I see it as more of a challenging hobby after I'm done work.

"Following through is the tough part."

I disagree with the sentiment of this post, but THAT statement is absolutely true. So much so, that "hacking" yourself to do so is a really good idea. As you say, it's easy to quit. It's ESPECIALLY easy to quit if you're doing it on the side. "Oh that side project? Yeah, I kinda lost interest in that" is easy to say and no one will care. It's a LOT harder to say, "Oh, the idea I quit my job over? It failed." because that makes you look like a failure.

Quitting your job is a similar psychological hack to fatblogging or announcing an engagement at a big party. Or burning the ships once you reach foreign shores. Being "desperate" is what can often push you through the crappy or boring parts of your startup.

As many others have already done, I'd argue exactly the opposite of what's said in this article. Quitting your job to pursue your dreams full-time is much more worthy of applause than relegating your dreams to a mere "side project."

Too bad. Doing what you love on the side means you don’t have to risk everything immediately. You have a steady income so you’re less desperate. You can build it slowly until whatever it is is such a success that it justifies quitting your regular job. It’s a measured approach instead of a toss of the dice. Plus, you can easily turn around if you go down the wrong path (or lose motivation).

Maybe these “keep the day job and build it on the side” folks are the ones who really deserve the applause.