5 Things to Remember Before Leaving Corporate Life for Entrepreneurship

I resigned from Friendster a few months ago and it’s been one crazy but fun roller coaster ride after I hung up my corporate “jersey” and went full time with my business. An article recently came out on Manila Bulletin written by Cora Llamas which talks about having a “second life” or changing careers/vocation. In the article Cora mentioned something that we briefly touched on during my initial interview with her about Social Media and Blogging for Filipinos. I’d like to expound on that in this entry by sharing 5 important things to remember before you decide to leave corporate and become an entrepreneur. Check them out after the break.

The most obvious thing to remember is to make sure that you have a solid and feasible business idea that can actually work and generate revenue. As much as possible make sure you have everything laid out in a document which talks about the product, your marketing strategy, and your financial projections. Share your plan with trusted friends and mentors to see what they think about it. If you feel confident already, then go through the following 5 things to see if you’re really ready to leave corporate life.

1. Capital
SHOW ME THE MONEY! Where will you get the funds to finance your business? There are several potential capital sources that you can try. The best one of course is just borrowing at no interest which you can only get from your family or really close friends. Note that by doing this you are already straining the relationship a bit and you better make damn sure that you pay every single centavo on time because if you don’t it will ruin the friendship completely.

Other sources include venture capitalists (meet with them and propose your plan), banks, and financial institutions (crazy interest rates though). Another idea is to raise part of the capital on your own and then look for partners that can fill in the remaining gap. Be wary about this. Only get partners that you can really trust AND work with. I’ve seen so many friendships go down the drain because they went into business together.

2. Security
Next is financial security. This was advice that I got from financial gurus Chinkee Tan and Randell Tiongson. They told me to compute my usual monthly expenses/budget and compare it to my current savings account. The question I should ask myself is how many months can I survive without receiving a paycheck? A good number would be 6 months – 1 year. This gives you enough time to either get that business running or if it fails you still have time to look for a new job.

3. Skills & Expertise
Next take an inventory of skills that you’ve accumulated over the past few years. Write them down. Be deliberate in exploiting your strengths and addressing your weaknesses. This is crucial because you can’t slack off anymore and still get a paycheck. If you don’t work, you don’t get paid in business. If your job is crappy, you won’t get more clients. Be aware of your limitations and work around them. Make full use of your strengths.

4. Network
Another important thing to take note of is the network of people that you’ve built over the past few years of being the corporate circuit. You get to meet a lot of managers from other companies especially if you’re part of the marketing or sales departments. These are connections that can lead to potential sales and referrals later on. Encode all of the calling cards that you’ve collected and go through them and see who you can tap for your new business venture as a customer, supplier, or maybe even partner.

5. Seek God’s Will
Pray about the decision. Read the bible. Talk to your pastor. Seek advice from your elders, mentors, and teachers. Make sure you talk about this and clear this decision with your wife or husband. This is a life changing decision so you shouldn’t be too rash about it.

Being an entrepreneur has a lot of advantages but it also has several big challenges that you have to surmount. It’s not as easy as it looks, hehe.

Also, please don’t think for a second that it’s wrong to be in corporate or working for someone. There are lessons, networks, and skills that you will only learn in corporate that you won’t get to know in entrepreneurship. Some people also thrive more in a corporate environment and if that’s your passion then by all means keep at it. As long as it satisfies your mind, heart, wallet, and soul then you should go on with whatever it is you’re doing.