Fulltimers...when did you quit

I think it all really depends on your individual situation. I've been full time from the start, the only time I've had a job was when I took a year off to work for a company that had always been a dream of mine to work for. I started out at 18 and it was fine for me because I was young and didn't need much and could live off of little until my business grew. Since I had no other option but to succeed, I had built up a 6 figure a year income within 6 months. If I had a job during this time there is no way I would have been able to do that (not saying others can't).

You need to find what's right for you. My gut instinct is to always say, "quit now" because it forces you to make it work and stop just fiddling around in IM. But that would put a lot of people in a bad way. The trick is finding that right balance of doing well enough that you're not going to be kicked out of your home but also not waiting until you're on easy street because that day will never come. You should have a little nervous fear when you quit, it's natural and will help you do better by your business. There comes a time when you have to burn your ships, as Napoleon Hill would put it.

If you're married and have kids you need to consider how it will affect them, but at the same time don't let your family's preconceived notions stand in your way. The answer to this question is different for everybody, but it will be nice to hear what others have to say.

It really depends on the situation. The younger you are, and the less dependent on your day job, the easier it is. Having a family and being in a job with good benefits makes it a much more complicated decision. You have to take into account things such as the cost of replacing medical insurance.

John

I was a teacher when I found out that my husband and I were expecting a baby. I decided that I wasn't going to return to teaching...and my salary ended in September of '07.

Thus began my search for a way to make money online I started ghostwriting, and eventually affiliate marketing and creating my own products, and the rest is history.

I definitely did things backwards, but I was motivated enough to make it work no matter what -- staying home with my son was something that was non-negotiable for me. That drove me to find success, and I feel so incredibly lucky that it's worked out so perfectly.

I quit 6 months ago, and have dedicated the last 6 months to building my website, which only went live 6 weeks ago, but I am already getting almost 200 uniques a day, and should have a respectable income in about 2-3 months.

I am at the point where I am seriously contemplating making that move. I'm only 22 years old and make very good money with my mortgage company but I'm sick of not having a life and working 10 hours a day in a cubicle. It can drive a person mad!

I'm seeing success online and I'm thinking if I devote my time to this rather than sitting in a cube all day I could be even more successful. I'll keep the forums updated of the day when I make that big leap. I would have done it by now but my monthly nut is pretty substantial and I can't afford to take that leap of faith quite yet.

I'm still working at a full time job as well. I originally was of the opinion that once I hit $5k a month my wife could quit her job and stay home with our son (her dream job), and I would quit mine once I got to $10k a month.

I've decided to reverse that. I have decided that once I hit the first $5k a month for at least 2 months in a row, I will quit. The reason I decided to change that is because of the medical insurance thing. Hers is really good and it covers her and my son. When she quits that insurance is gone, and the cost for them to be with my insurance plan is $600/month and the coverage is worse than hers.

Also if I quit first that allows me to focus on the business full time, which means I can get the business to $10k a month quicker.

2003 I quit my full-time job as a computer programmer to do this. I don't recommend anyone do this unless you're already successful and bringing in more than a full time income. Quit foolish looking backward but eventually it was the right decision, just not the right time.

Tyrus

I quit work a few weeks after
discovering IM.

As soon as I realised the potential,
I quit my job...

...and I made 3 times my regular
monthly wage in my first full month
of IM.

That told me I'd made the right
choice...

-David Raybould

My story was a bit different: I didn't quit to go IM. Instead, I quit to take a sabbatical year because my old 9-to-5 job was boring me to death. So I traveled and idled around for two years and then, once money was running thin, it was time to get working again. Since I was not going back to the 9-to-5 life I explored some online options, which eventually led me by happentance to blogging, ebook-creation and IM as a whole.

It's been quite a journey actually!

I quit school and partied hardcore for 2 years. Then, i took a 9 to 5 job... thought it sucked (after 4 months) and became a fulltime IM'er (in the mid 90's as a teenager i used to make some money with my dial-up bbs system, so i was confident i could sell things to people). That was about 11 years ago and it was the best decision i ever made.

Simple as that.

Hey

I just quit last week and now am work my last ever few weeks with a boss !!

Sadly I have to work my notice to the end of the month

What made me do it .... I spent last week in Vegas with some big players online and came home the next day and quit !

Thats the life I want to live so Im throwing everything in to my first major launch next month !

Everyone has to make the decision themselves, I just knew I had to do it right now !!

Best wishes

Dean

I quit my day job in software development just over two years ago now. I had been doing affiliate marketing in my spare time for about 3 years before that.

I was quite cautious about the whole thing - I made sure I had a year's salary in the bank just in case it didn't work out and I had also had over a year of making a decent amount per month, but not quite enough.

When I quit I had to dip in to my "emergency fund" over the first few months, but after that the extra work paid off.

I am pretty happy now working for myself and love the freedom (and not having to get up so early every morning, LOL)

Cheers,
Suzanne

As soon as you realize that you can make more in 8 hours working in your business than in your "9-5" job, it's time to quit. At least thats the second I knew.

I couldn't think of any job I wanted to do, so I knew I had to get into business for myself.

I spent 4 months at a really boring job then spent a few months trekking around Europe. Couldn't ever get a job again after that

Sean Morrissy

Very good thread indeed. I have a full-time job and only doing a few hours in IM. But IM is my dream job ... So far haven't figured out a way to make enough to work IM full time.

Your stories inspire me, everyday.

Full timer here that got laid off almost a year ago. With the free time i decided i do not want to go though this again and instead i work on building myself up instead of building up someone elses company. I work a million times harder and enjoy doing it because it has to do with me and I am not doing it for someone else.

If you are working full time I would say devote all the time and effort you can till you can dump your full time job and get on your feet with your online job.

I was in management working 7 days a week for pennies ($350 a week) which might seem good 15 years ago but working 80 hours a week for that little bit of money is not good at all... Especially since I increased the profits of the business from $10,000 a week to $40,000 a week and I seen not one red cent..

That was 15 years ago, I told my boss to stick it and walked out.. Have not had a real "J.O.B." since...

It really depends upon ones situation.. Personally I got tired of making someone else rich while I just struggled to pay my bills. So I decided to take action and if I had no job what better motivation to force myself to take action.

James

I am blogging pretty much every day and working on my first project. I started a Vlog and plan to video everyday til I reach success and talk about my failures and successes in internet marketing. Like a daily journal. My goal is once I reach success hopefully with first product. I will video my resignation. I have a Wife and Kid so it is hard to quit a full time job after 10 years.

Great question... I didnt have a job to begin with really... I got out of the military and was just looking for something... I knew I couldent work for someone and I was living at home with mommy and daddy so I put tremendous pressure on myself to succeed.

Granted I had a few grand saved up from the military as a cushion, but as luck would have it just when those funds were being exhausted I had my first big break when a guy by the name of Shawn Casey promoted my very first product and did 5 figures in sales.

I havent looked back since. I think having that pressure on really helped a lot. I KNEW I couldent live at home for much longer, re-enlisting in the military wasnt an option, neither was getting a job.

I worked some seriously longs nights.. sorta like in this video... UNCUT! Internet Marketing - Late Night Dedication

Just keep leveraging each success.... good luck to you my friend.

When I realised I would never make this work in my spare time. I've been watching and waiting for much too long, and it's time to put up or shut up.