Steps for Becoming an Entrepreneur 4: Full-time or Part-time Entrepreneur?

In the third installment on this series about the steps that are needed to become an entrepreneur, I talked about taking the decision of starting the project. In this article, I introduced the idea of working full-time or part-time on the project, as both are viable scenarios. In the current post, I will analyze this topic further.

Before I analyze this topic, let me share a little bit of my experience. I’ve been an entrepreneur for almost all my life and I’ve had entrepreneur projects that have demanded from me full-time commitment. Also, I’ve had projects where for different circumstances I’ve only been able to work part-time. The fact is that I’ve failed and been successful in both types of projects, so there isn’t a magic formula for this question. Today I work full-time on my main entrepreneurship, which is my consulting firm, although I have several satellite project, which I dedicate only part of my time.

Several months ago I had a meeting with someone who apparently had a great deal of experience in entrepreneurships and helping entrepreneurs. I told him I had an idea for a new entrepreneurship. He advice me to quit what I was doing and make this new entrepreneurship my full-time job.

Quite often, I’ve heard a similar advice for entrepreneurs: quit what you’re doing and devote 100% of you time to your project. This is not a bad advice, in fact I usually think this is a good alternative, but you have to analyze the context. For example, in my case I’m not willing to quit my consulting entrepreneurship. I have several additional projects that I must build them around my spare time for them to work.

Also, sometimes for any number of reasons, someone might not be able or willing to quit his day job. This might not be the best-case scenario, but as entrepreneurs we have to be creative and see how we make them a reality.

If you ask me, the best way to make an idea an entrepreneurship reality is to devote 100% of you time to it. However, as I’ve stated earlier, each case must be analyzed separately. If you are determined to make your project a success, you will make it no matter what the circumstances are.

So my conclusion is that if you can, you should make your entrepreneurship project your full-time job. However if this isn’t possible at the moment, don’t let this become a roadblock. I’m sure you’ll figure it out and soon we’ll be hearing about your project.

Image taken from Flickr.com