Faced with a tough decision.....

20 replies
I'm stuck between a decision to continue my daytime job, or to commit myself fully to do my internet marketing.

My job's pay is quite decent however, it is not a job which I can fully put all my passion and talents into it.

My internet marketing is not earning a lot, however, it is something that I feel that it is really my own that I can do.

Which road would you guys pick?
#decision #faced #tough
  • Profile picture of the author stevecl
    until you start earning a consistant amount online that you can live off, keep the day job. What would you do if you gave up work and couldn't earn enough online?

    Thats the question you need to ask yourself.

    Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author Lance K
    Originally Posted by zijian View Post


    My job's pay is quite decent however, it is not a job which I can fully put all my passion and talents into it.
    Is that a sly way of saying you don't give it your all? Cuz if you half ass it in your day job, you'll half ass it when you're on your own. Regardless of passion and talents.
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    • Profile picture of the author Bai_Mike
      Originally Posted by Lance K View Post

      Is that a sly way of saying you don't give it your all? Cuz if you half ass it in your day job, you'll half ass it when you're on your own. Regardless of passion and talents.
      How can I not be half-assed? I think that either way this problem is gonna hurt me, whether be it in real life or IM.

      Would like to pick one course of action this time round and be fully congruent that I made it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Peter Bestel
    In my opinion, if it were me, I'd advise running the IM business alongside your regular job until the IM side could support you.

    But that's all fine advice, but in reality, I kicked my job into touch way before my business was able to support me and my family. Stupid and reckless? Yes. But it was necessary to maintain my sanity! I kid you not. And it's paid off, but I honestly couldn't advise anyone else to take that course of action.

    Peter

    P.S. You're not seriously going to listen to anyone on here to help you choose the course of your life are you?
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    • Profile picture of the author Bai_Mike
      Originally Posted by Peter Bestel View Post

      In my opinion, if it were me, I'd advise running the IM business alongside your regular job until the IM side could support you.

      But that's all fine advice, but in reality, I kicked my job into touch way before my business was able to support me and my family. Stupid and reckless? Yes. But it was necessary to maintain my sanity! I kid you not. And it's paid off, but I honestly couldn't advise anyone else to take that course of action.

      Peter

      P.S. You're not seriously going to listen to anyone on here to help you choose the course of your life are you?
      Just taking opinions cause I'm stuck in this crossroad. And yes, I really want to maintain my sanity this time round.

      Being divided between these two courses of action is really driving me and my colleagues around me crazy.
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      • Profile picture of the author Lance K
        Burn the ships and go for it.
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        "You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want."
        ~ Zig Ziglar
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      • Profile picture of the author Eric Engel
        A bigger question to ask your self is: how many people depend on my living. If you have kids, it might be better to wait it out. But then, it's something you'll wrestle with no matter which decision you make.
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  • Profile picture of the author Barry Davis
    Don't quit your regular job until you're making enough in IM to sustain you and your family. Also, I would wait until you see six months or so of steady IM income on that sustainable level. That's what I did a couple of years ago and it freed me from a whole lot of stress.
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  • Profile picture of the author dvduval
    It sounds like you are very close to the tipping point where it is time for change. Making this change will involve some risk, you need to be prepared not just financially, but also you need to have a plan. For me, this is one of the best decisions I ever made (best was quitting smoking).
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    • Profile picture of the author Bai_Mike
      Originally Posted by dvduval View Post

      It sounds like you are very close to the tipping point where it is time for change. Making this change will involve some risk, you need to be prepared not just financially, but also you need to have a plan. For me, this is one of the best decisions I ever made (best was quitting smoking).
      Yes. Almost on the brink of losing my sanity because of this. My plan is to stick to some of the recommended guides that are on the front page of the forum. Financial-wise I'm basically single and with no commitments.

      This indecision has tortured me for years already. Basically all parts of my life are affected, be it finding a girlfriend, committing myself fully is really something that has been difficult for me.

      I wish to end all this suffering by making the right decision and going all the way with it. Otherwise, every single day is a torture for me.
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      • Profile picture of the author tommygadget
        Single with no commitments. I say keep the day job and outsource. Put together a business plan and flesh it out with all the steps you need to complete the plan. Then assemble a team of outsourcers and use the income from your day job to jumpstart your business. It is a no-brainer. Doing it all yourself will surely take much more time and with no income coming in, will be very discouraging at first. Trust me, I was tossed out into the cold with house, family and children when my company outsourced our department to India. You definitely don't want to do it the way I did.

        TomG.

        Originally Posted by zijian View Post

        Yes. Almost on the brink of losing my sanity because of this. My plan is to stick to some of the recommended guides that are on the front page of the forum. Financial-wise I'm basically single and with no commitments.

        This indecision has tortured me for years already. Basically all parts of my life are affected, be it finding a girlfriend, committing myself fully is really something that has been difficult for me.

        I wish to end all this suffering by making the right decision and going all the way with it. Otherwise, every single day is a torture for me.
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      • Profile picture of the author naruq
        If I were you I would make sure I have a year or more of living expenses and my Internet marketing Business is earning 2 times as much monthly that you are earning at your job. In addition, I would include some money to market my Internet marketing business.
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  • Profile picture of the author Terry Hatfield
    I think you kind of answered your own question.

    You said your IM is not earning alot right now. Why is that? I see alot of people say they could dedicate themselves full time to internet marketing and really start making the cash then.

    The honest truth is if you can't make a lot of money while working your job then you will most likely not be making it when you quit your job.

    It takes much discipline to be self employed and manage your time correctly. Even then you need to be doing the right stuff or your income will still be small.

    It really doesn't take as much time to get profiting in IM as people think when you are doing things correctly.

    By far the best option is to build up your income working part time then when your income is large enough take that leap.

    There is really no reason a person needs to quit their job to start making good money in IM.

    Even if you have a low paying job that you hate I would recommend you keep your job until your IM is paying your bills.

    Me personally, I got to a point where I refused to get a job. I had no choice but to make self employment work.

    I had no job skills that would pay well, a shoddy work history for my resume, and hated the idea of working for someone else almost to the point I would rather die then do it.

    So for me it was a no brainer.

    But if I had a good paying job I would of built my income up while still working because it really isn't that difficult to do.

    Terry
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  • Profile picture of the author shermanchoo
    outsourcing is a good idea. Many talents at the worklance places.
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  • Are you nuts? Keep your job, man! Somebody up there said keep it until you have six months of consistent IM income. I'd bump that up to a year.

    It's really, really hard to make a living in the IM game. Never have I worked so hard for so little (though I'm hoping the hard work will pay off down the line. Keep that job. You'll miss it if you lose it.
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    • Profile picture of the author Peter Bestel
      Originally Posted by SurviveUnemployment View Post

      It's really, really hard to make a living in the IM game. Never have I worked so hard for so little (though I'm hoping the hard work will pay off down the line. Keep that job. You'll miss it if you lose it.
      You see, this is why you shouldn't listen to anyone on here when considering your course of action.

      The above post is JUST THEIR OPINION - and one I happen to disagree with - but that doesn't matter either.

      It's your call.

      Peter
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      • Profile picture of the author Eric Engel
        No family?

        Listen - get your "I have to try my own thing" out of the way now. 30 years from now, you'll be wondering 'what if'. But by then you'll have people depending on you and you won't be able to even contemplate making the move.

        I say JUST DO IT.
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        • Profile picture of the author Kay King
          No one at work or on a forum can tell you the best way to live your life.

          I don't see this as being "work vs IM" - but as someone who has not learned to make decisions and stick with them. You will need to make lots of decisions when running your own business.

          Get the emotion out of it and look at the problem realistically.

          What's the worst that can happen if you decide to do this?
          Can you live with the worst that can happen?
          Have you learned/done enough online to have a firm plan of action?
          Can you survive financially on your current online earnings?
          Can you support yourself fully for 6 months without IM income?

          Sticking to guides on the front page of the forum is not a plan for a business. I'd say before taking such a big leap you keep your job until you can honestly commit yourself to IM and have a real plan in place for building a business.

          In the end - no matter what anyone tells you, you will have to make this decision for yourself. If you continue with both for a while, you need to separate the two and leave IM at home when you go to work. If all you talk about at work is IM you may find the decision made for you by your employer.

          kay
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          • Profile picture of the author zenmn
            1. Keep plugging away at your IM and look for a new job.

            2. But then again, with the economy the way it is, you may get laid off...you would at least get a few unemployment checks while you do your IM.

            3. Find a job that is/could be related to your IM efforts


            BottomLine:
            Usually you hate your job because you feel no sense of contribution or connection or adventure.

            My advice is look really hard for ways to this in the job you have now.

            I gaurantee you it will spill over into your IM business!

            -zenmn
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  • Profile picture of the author David Raybould
    Hello Zijian,

    I'm sure you can tell from all the opinions here that noone can really help you make this decision...everyone's situation is different.

    Personally, I hated just about every day job I ever had. Something about working hard and making someone else rich as a result just never sat right with me.

    Like peter above I jumped ship WAY before I was really ready to start supporting myself...but you know what?

    When you aren't wasting 8 hours of every day working on someone else's business, it's AMAZING how fast your own business grows. Within a month of quitting my job I'd already earned three times what I would have earned if I was still at the job.

    It's hard to argue with that kind of logic.

    Hope that helps

    David
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