Have you left your 9-5 to work on your side hustles? If so, why?
Lately, I've been seeing way too many posts about software engineers describing their 9-5 as a toxic environment, where they're overworked, underappreciated, and ultimately being left with no choice other than to resign and work on their side project(s), or to "change career" after burning-out 😞
Is this something you've ever done or plan to do? 👀
I’ve done it. Though not for the reasons you’ve mentioned. I actually loved my previous job and was making great money.
In late 2019 I handed in my resignation for Q2 2020. The pandemic made me think twice. Ended up following through anyway.
I’ve always wanted to work on projects but never had the time. That, and I wanted to work on myself: learn the piano, get in shape, read more books, finish a few video games, and meet new people.
So I ended up swapping my 9-5 for a 9-9. I’ve had cycles of being down in the dumps since solopreneuring‘s pretty hard. Worth it though. IMO fastest growth I’ve experienced in years in all areas of my life.
I’ve written about my thought process here if you’re interested: https://engineur.io/im-leaving-my-job-during-a-pandemic/
Loved your bucked list :)
Hahah thanks!
besides the 1year runway, how did you deal with health insurance? or is healthcare 100% free despite being self-employed??
I live in Canada, so healthcare's free lol
I love my 9-5 but I feel I'm no progressing as well as I desired and also I wanted to try new things and invest in myself, so I went part time. Now I work on my side project on Tuesdays (and also the week ends and some evenings).
It's hard to find a balance but I really love what doors it opened for me.
Yes and no. :)
I quit my "other" side-hustle at the beginning of this year - which was a $xxx/hr freelancing job. I quit it because while it was good money, it wasn't "mine" - I was trading hours for $'s and had no upside in the projects.
I still have my 9-5, but I quit freelancing to open up more time for my own side-projects and hopefully something comes from that.
I enjoy my full-time and the company I work for, which does help a lot. But is also in some instances an issue, too. Sometimes I wonder if I did "hate" my job, I'd be even more motivated to do what you are talking about and quit it to focus primarily on side-projects.
Hopefully, I can keep the motivation and someday a side-project(s) will provide enough happiness to leave even a great job.
Thank you for the comment!
Do you believe that your 9-5 is an “issue” because you’re too comfortable, or it’s an issue because it takes too much of your time?
IMO - when anyone says they don't "have time" for something, it means that thing is not a priority for them.
So even saying you want to have a side-hustle, or workout, or go out with friends, start a new hobby, etc but don't have the time; really just means you've prioritized your time for other things over that thing (a hobby, going out, working out, side-hustle, etc).
The key is 1) figuring out why it's not a priority and 2) what adjustments to make to make it a priority.
For me in this instance - you're right - my 9-5 is comfortable: work/life balanced, low-stress, financially very good. Comfortable enough in all those areas that I do not feel the need to prioritize a side-hustle for any of the typical reasons (better life balance, less-stress working for myself, more money).
I haven't quite nailed the second part yet on how to make it a priority over a long period of time yet.