patrick.net

Start your own business! We should have a patnet entrepreneurs group.

I quitted my job to working on consulting projects two years ago. It was not a hard decision. Now I have quitted that too and focus on my own projects.

If you can make the decision to have kids you can decide to quit too. Easy.

The economy in the Bay Area is thriving. But that should not have anything to do with your decision.

I wouldn't voluntarily travel to Mexico anymore...

Take a month off work, if you can, and see how you like it. I actually missed my cubicle after the first 3 weeks but I have toddlers...

You sound like me. I'm debt-free, have money in the bank, and as an IT Consultant I just do not want to travel anymore. BTW, I'm 61-years-old. :-(

What would I do with my free time? Spend more of it at my local VA Hospital where I am a VA Volunteer on weekends. (I'm retired military)

I think everyone thinks about doing this, forget about it, and concentrate on getting into something you really enjoy, or freelancing it. But, it sure does not hurt to take some time off either. On the other hand, if you can manage working out of your home and can afford health insurance for your family go for it. I know guys who change jobs just because they are getting a bit older and don't want to take the risk of losing it all because they need/want a better health plan.

Strategist says

1. How old are you?

If you decide to ever go back to a job your age could get in the way.

2. How old are the kids?

If you plan on traveling their school schedule will restrict you.

3. Do you own your home with a mortgage?

You have an obligation to consider.

4. What about health benefits?

Your expenses have just shot up. I sense your wife does not work full time.

Build up your business as much as possible and then quit, even if you have to put in 80 hours.

Good luck.

1) 29
2) 3,4
3) No. Rent
4) Currently insured. This is something I've thought about.

jazz music says

Plan to travel on a limited basis and busy yourself at home unless you are the camping, hiking, hunting, fishing type.

RV people seem to enjoy just "being" and I guess there is a lot to be said for that. I think there is a social life that goes along with the RV life, and then you move on.

We are the camping/hiking type. Thought about a small RV.

joshuatrio says

Strategist says

1. How old are you?

If you decide to ever go back to a job your age could get in the way.

2. How old are the kids?

If you plan on traveling their school schedule will restrict you.

3. Do you own your home with a mortgage?

You have an obligation to consider.

4. What about health benefits?

Your expenses have just shot up. I sense your wife does not work full time.

Build up your business as much as possible and then quit, even if you have to put in 80 hours.

Good luck.

1) 29

2) 3,4

3) No. Rent

4) Currently insured. This is something I've thought about.

Go for it.

joshuatrio says

jazz music says

Plan to travel on a limited basis and busy yourself at home unless you are the camping, hiking, hunting, fishing type.

RV people seem to enjoy just "being" and I guess there is a lot to be said for that. I think there is a social life that goes along with the RV life, and then you move on.

We are the camping/hiking type. Thought about a small RV.

Like the RV idea. You could get a part time contract job where you can work from your RV and upload changes whenever you have internet access so that you are not completely dependent on your online business. I'd say the only thing to carefully consider is your kids and how they would fare, otherwise it sounds all peachy.

donjumpsuit says

Personally, I have a personality that strongly desires getting up on weekdays and being involved in a "more than one person' job environment.

You only think you do or are at work and suspicious your CEO is tapping the T1(it happens).

Have you ever lived a life where you have the freedom of a daily schedule unencumbered by a '9 to 5' responsibility?

Yes, its friggin AWESOME!

I know it sounds great in principle, and some people do have the disposition for this.

:)

But i think that is the question you must ask yourself.

Will in one month, you be satisfied 'sitting around' or will you have enough to fill a day, and look forward to the next?

The latter. Every day is an adventure!

Work OTOH..

And not get to the end of a day and feel "Well this was a waste of day, I accomplished nothing!"

Sounds like most people's typical day at work.

New Renter says

Yes, its friggin AWESOME!

New Renter says

The latter. Every day is an adventure!

Work OTOH..

And not get to the end of a day and feel "Well this was a waste of day, I accomplished nothing!"

Sounds like most people's typical day at work.

Are you guys kidding? I have been my own boss for 25 years. You get no benefits....no paid vacation.....you pay double the payroll tax....no sick leave....and you don't work 9 -5 because you are on call 24/7.
The other side is always greener.
Having said that, I will still NEVER EVER work for a boss. :)

If your web based business can cover your overhead then sure, quit the job.

And no, anyone who misses their former cubicle life, clearly hasn't lived outside of the corporation.

Plus, you can also use the web business, to build other skills like data analytics and so forth. It's not like you can't add your business, as another resume item, the caveat of course is that you make your wife 'the boss' if you need a reference later.

Thus, your fall back plan will be to search for another corporate job in time, however, in the meantime, you get to be an adventurer.

Strategist says

joshuatrio says

Strategist says

1. How old are you?

If you decide to ever go back to a job your age could get in the way.

2. How old are the kids?

If you plan on traveling their school schedule will restrict you.

3. Do you own your home with a mortgage?

You have an obligation to consider.

4. What about health benefits?

Your expenses have just shot up. I sense your wife does not work full time.

Build up your business as much as possible and then quit, even if you have to put in 80 hours.

Good luck.

1) 29

2) 3,4

3) No. Rent

4) Currently insured. This is something I've thought about.

Go for it.

Thanks. That's the direction I'm leaning as well. Would rather not look back on life and regret it.

Think I'm going to work in my position for another 3-4 months and then take the plunge. My online revenue should be significantly more by then as well.

Thanks for the input guys.

Since I also dislike working and would rather be independently wealthy, doing my own thing, here's from the 'no kids' thread ...

"This prior Saturday was a work weekend for me. Basically, it sucked.

Not too long ago, however, I had that perfect Saturday.

I was staying at a four star hotel in Montreal's downtown.

I woke up after 10:30, went to the hotel gym and used the exercise bike along with some weights.

After showering, I met up with a Canadian buddy for lunch.

And then, after lunch, I started working on another friend's screenplay. I was helping out by ghost writing two of the chapters.

By late afternoon, I went to a Martial Arts demo and participated in some of the drills and tutorials. Afterwards, had dinner with the crew there.

Upon returning to the hotel, I went back to the screenplay. I started sharing some of my work with my writer friend via IM. We did some brainstorming and I went back to making edits.

By late evening, a busty svelte dancer arrived at my room. We completed our workout with my pole sliding between her knockers. We had a few Martinis and went for a second round. I won't describe anymore.

When the day was over, all I could say was … I feel good!"

http://www.youtube.com/embed/U5TqIdff_DQ

I had to go to work in business for myself because I kept getting fired. I am the only one who would employ me.

everything says

I think everyone thinks about doing this, forget about it, and concentrate on getting into something you really enjoy, or freelancing it. But, it sure does not hurt to take some time off either. On the other hand, if you can manage working out of your home and can afford health insurance for your family go for it. I know guys who change jobs just because they are getting a bit older and don't want to take the risk of losing it all because they need/want a better health plan.

How sad is that?

Those people don't even own their own bodies. If you can't figure out how to properly maintain your machine, and fuel it properly, you deserve to be owned by the corporations.

The fact that my employer pretty much forces top tier "health" "insurance" on us as part of our compensation plan, may very well be the reason why I leave this gig in jan '15.

If you have the savings to sustain yourselves then I think there's no harm in giving it a shot. It's not like the choice is irrevocable. Since you have your own business, it won't have the appearance of some kind of breakdown. I'm not saying that you are having a breakdown. I'm just looking at it through the lens of someone interviewing you in a few years should you decide to get a 9-to-5 job again. As long as you can make it appear that you gave up your job to pursue something objectively valuable, I don't think it would have to worry about being radioactive should you decide to return to the job market.

Call it Crazy says

.

Upon returning to the hotel, I went back to the screenplay. I started sharing some of my work with my writer friend via IM. We did some brainstorming and I went back to making edits.

Matrix... Hamster wheel.. Yeah. That's pretty much it.

Strategist says

New Renter says

Yes, its friggin AWESOME!

New Renter says

The latter. Every day is an adventure!

Work OTOH..

And not get to the end of a day and feel "Well this was a waste of day, I accomplished nothing!"

Sounds like most people's typical day at work.

Are you guys kidding? I have been my own boss for 25 years. You get no benefits....no paid vacation.....you pay double the payroll tax....no sick leave....and you don't work 9 -5 because you are on call 24/7.

The other side is always greener.

Having said that, I will still NEVER EVER work for a boss. :)

You forget, I'm a kept man :)

turtledove says

I'm just looking at it through the lens of someone interviewing you in a few years should you decide to get a 9-to-5 job again. As long as you can make it appear that you gave up your job to pursue something objectively valuable, I don't think it would have to worry about being radioactive should you decide to return to the job market.

The easiest way to do this is not to say that you're self-employed. The idea is that you work for a small company, ABC Web Services, and make your spouse or friend, your hiring manager.

And then, once 2 years passes, you won't have to explain leaving XYZ Corp because you'll be gainfully employed by ABC Web Services.

I am not sure gaps in the resume is as harmful as before.

Many hiring managers respect courage and the intellectual curiosity of self-exploration.

When I was looking through resumes I did NOT want to see drones.

Being an employee is the best way to settle down and goof off. Your manager is mostly concerned with looking good and not rocking the boat. A bit of courtesan politics is all you need. There is always someone else to do the "real" work, which is likely to be scrapped anyway because of some "new vision" or "new initiative."

If you want to thrive, starting your own business is the only way.

Peter P says

I am not sure gaps in the resume is as harmful as before.

Many hiring managers respect courage and the intellectual curiosity of self-exploration.

When I was looking through resumes I did NOT want to see drones.

You still need to be 'seen' as working. Corporate America is the land of loser-dom. If you start a business, that business has a name and thus, it's a resume line item but at the same time, you don't want to be too obvious ...

John Doe

CEO, ABC Web Services

is not as good as ...

John Doe

Business Development Lead, ABC Web Services

The second person will get at least a screening.

Rin says

John Doe

CEO, ABC Web Services

is not as good as

John Doe

Business Development Lead, ABC Web Services

The second person will get at least a screening.

Not necessarily. Some hiring managers hate window dressing. It will come up on the phone screen and become a major turn-off.

What about "Business Development Partner?"

CEO is such an overrated title that says nothing.

This is just my opinion. But I grew up with a Dad who did this very same thing: He up and quit one day. Thereafter started a long period of time where he went from job to job, maybe lasting a year or two with long periods of being unemployed. He did start a small business but this too was rather stressful. So I grew up with that stress.

I myself have been laid off twice. Both times were because the company wasn't doing well and laid off a bunch of staff. Those made an impression on me. I guess the way I personally feel about it is if you really dislike a job, try and find another. Companies are like people: Some have really great corporate cultures and people. You might also find a job where you really like the people you work with. That makes a big difference.

Lastly, I am not sure what you do for a living, but if its in tech, well tech moves so fast that a year spent away from it can mean a return to a job market where your skills are obsolete.

Anyway, I am a good 10+ years older than you and after having had the experiences I've had I would be very wary of just quitting a job unless:

A: You have a dependable, reliable, very well established business of your own
B: You line up a better job that fulfills what you want out of a job to replace the one you're quitting.

Good luck...

edvard2 says

Anyway, I am a good 10+ years older than you and after having had the experiences I've had I would be very wary of just quitting a job unless:

A: You have a dependable, reliable, very well established business of your own

B: You line up a better job that fulfills what you want out of a job to replace the one you're quitting.

Or, it may just take a leap of faith.

Is life about stability? Or is it about growth?

I once left one of the best companies in the world after just months on the job. I was too afraid of the golden handcuff.

joshuatrio says

I feel like I'm crazy for being willing to drop a great job - but at this point, I find no satisfaction in what I do, and I think it would be more rewarding to build my own business and spend more time traveling with the family... rather than in a cubicle.

Remember it's a job: it's not really supposed to be fun.

This being said, if you leave and make it work, it's the best scenario.

You just need to manage the risks.

- That means first you should focus on working and earning a living even if you leave. I wouldn't just leave for an extended vacation.

- You can't really depend on a small web business, since you have kids. I think you need at least 2 yrs of living expenses in savings so you can start or transition to something else if needed. That will save you a lot of stress.

No way i'd consider doing that unless I had my condo paid off and the kids were older.

Peter P says

Or, it may just take a leap of faith.

Is life about stability? Or is it about growth?

Basically its about whether you want to end up old and eating cat food or end up being old and able to enjoy the last 20-30 years of your life as you want.

Peter P says

If you want to thrive, starting your own business is the only way.

Exactly what I was thinking.

I want to do something I really enjoy. My thoughts are that if I had 30-40 hours a week to work on my own business - it would be that much easier to double/triple the income earned off of my own business.

Have a buddy going through the same thing and is earning much more than working for the man.

Working for a corporation - you're just making someone else richer.

you should quit. at only 25 k a year you would also qualify for many free government benefits that would supplement your income. work is WAY overated in this country. personally, i don't know any working slobs anymore!

Peter P says

I am not sure gaps in the resume is as harmful as before.

My wife 'dropped out' of the corporate mill for about 3 years while she ran her own bookkeeping business. After the recession killed her business she had to rejoin the mortals, we found that many employers were interested in how many clients she had, the issues she'd run into, etc. Overall, it seemed like it was a plus that she had been out on her own for a while.

Last early August the company I was working for moved the guy I thought I was working for, to another department. Then placed a rude obnoxious Luddite as the head of all development. Who was from the school of 'Fear gets results'.
He fired me to make a point and scare the shit of those that were left, into "Respecting his Authorit-igh!".

After that, I decided I will never work for a company again. I made the leap of faith to develop some technology I had been working on. I tried to sell it to two major companies. While they were sticker shocked by it, they were intrigued and processed me as Vendor. Then had me to build them some projects, that they didn't have the internal resources for. Using the technology that they didn't buy, I was able to about 3 to 6 months of development in less than a month.

I've been busy non-stop since November, I haven't even had the time revisit my original project and develop pending specs I planned on.

It works for me and them, because they get about 6 months worth of programming for about three months worth of programming, but it only takes me one month. It's a deliverable based system and not on man hours. Or I would be getting the short end of the stick. Besides it's not like it's free code for me. I spent a few years after my regular job developing my virtualized enterprise stack.

joshuatrio says

Working for a corporation - you're just making someone else richer.

That's an interesting moto, though I'm fairly sure most millionaires are corporate rats working for large corporations. They just aren't the billionaires.

Watch the movie Cypher.....

edvard2 says

Peter P says

Or, it may just take a leap of faith.

Is life about stability? Or is it about growth?

Basically its about whether you want to end up old and eating cat food or end up being old and able to enjoy the last 20-30 years of your life as you want.

What kind of idiot would sacrifice all the good years of their life, when they are able to fully enjoy all that this life has to offer, for working all those years away on the hope that you will be able to enjoy your time as a senior citizen, laughing at those eating cat food. Fuck that shit, twice. Call me old school, but to me, retirement means death, and I fully intend to use up all the good years prior to the slow decline of seniority, doing everything but working some meaningless and unfulfilling job. I just turned 33 and I've already figured out how to thrive on a 28 hour work week, that leaves me from thurs 5pm -Monday @ noon to live and not worry about working. No amount of money or faux securitry (benefits lol) woulde get me to trade away my time

errc says

What kind of idiot would sacrifice all the good years of their life, when they are able to fully enjoy all that this life has to offer, for working all those years away on the hope that you will be able to enjoy your time as a senior citizen, laughing at those eating cat food. Fuck that shit, twice. Call me old school, but to me, retirement means death, and I fully intend to use up all the good years prior to the slow decline of seniority, doing everything but working some meaningless and unfulfilling job. I just turned 33 and I've already figured out how to thrive on a 28 hour work week, that leaves me from thurs 5pm -Monday @ noon to live and not worry about working. No amount of money or faux securitry (benefits lol) woulde get me to trade away my time

Pretty much sums it up.

CaptainShuddup says

After that, I decided I will never work for a company again. I made the leap of faith to develop some technology I had been working on.

Congratulations. I'm glad that it worked out for you. You are probably doing better for yourself than for the man... yes?

errc says

What kind of idiot would sacrifice all the good years of their life, when they are able to fully enjoy all that this life has to offer, for working all those years away on the hope that you will be able to enjoy your time as a senior citizen, laughing at those eating cat food. Fuck that shit, twice. Call me old school, but to me, retirement means death,

Too bad I'm already having the time of my life. At the rate that I am earning I can retire in less than 10 years too. But either way, some of you guys who have the attitude like the one mentioned in quotes above had better save your money because when I retire you ain't gettin' jack shit from me nor will I pay for your cat food bills either.

edvard2 says

Peter P says

Or, it may just take a leap of faith.

Is life about stability? Or is it about growth?

Basically its about whether you want to end up old and eating cat food or end up being old and able to enjoy the last 20-30 years of your life as you want.

How can you possibly plan so far ahead without making too many assumptions about the future?

One ought to follow his passion and grow his character. If you don't dread retirement when you're old you will have failed.

Heraclitusstudent says

joshuatrio says

Working for a corporation - you're just making someone else richer.

That's an interesting moto, though I'm fairly sure most millionaires are corporate rats working for large corporations. They just aren't the billionaires.

Rich millionaire is such an oxymoron.