The Real Deal Offline Series: Don't Quit Your Day Job....No, I'm Really Serious, Don't Quit...

That sounds like good solid advice. Its good to see a post about planning how to transition without risking your everything on blind faith.

thanks.

LOL^

Really though, for people with established careers already and a family to support, you need to be responsible. SOME people don't have a choice except to start their own business. I didn't have a choice, and now I am very successful, at least more successful than I ever have been, still a long way from where I want to be.

First thing anyone should do before quitting their job, have 8 months of expenses saved up, for bills and your typical living expenses. Next, have enough saved up for marketing and other things you may need for your business.

I didn't do that, I still don't have 8 months of expenses saved up "just in case". But for people starting out, definitely have a savings account with 8 months of expenses. You need that for safety, and security.

I worry about the people I speak to every day on this forum. There are a ton of people posting, that contact me for advice in a certain area, I speak with many of them, and I still have PM's I never have got to yet. I have people that aren't even registered on here, emailing me, calling me, for various reasons and the stories I hear are way too often the same.

I hear of people about to lose their house, people that quit their job and have a family, wife, 3-4 kids, all this stuff. People that are desperate and wanting to make money to save their marriage, family, living situation, etc.

These people, my heart goes out to, but at the same time it is fiscal irresponsibility that is getting them in this situation. Most of the time, it is people wanting to maintain their current lifestyle after deciding to do this full time. Not going to happen most of the time. Many problems can be solved by creating a budget, and cutting the fat and cancer out of your budget.

How much do you spend eating out? 300 a month? Not anymore... cut it out... entertainment? Spend nothing.. play games, barbeque, have a bonfire. New pair of shoes, clothes, accessories, jewelry? Cut it out, you don't need it.

Most people, very ambitious, very smart, and highly driven people can succeed but most of the time they set themselves up for failure.

I had a conversation with a man that was 49 years old yesterday. He is doing offline marketing and is making $4,000 a month. HE thinks he is going great. NO. He came from a corporate job making 95K a year, and now his income is cut in half but his lifestyle is the same. His credit cards are maxing out, and they will lose their house. He has responsibilities and a family.

I looked at his budget, finances, savings, everything... I am not a CPA.. but I know how to live and I know how to survive financially. He was very honest, showed me all his debt. His debt is going to triple this year.

Basically, what it came down to... I told him he needs to make a decision, he needs to either spend less than what he makes, or he needs to quit and go back to his corporate job. The guy started crying, which just made me feel awkward and really, I am not a sympathetic person when it comes to something so easy. The fact is, he needs to sell his house, 2 of his kids are moved out, one is still living with them for another year or so... they can sell their house, move into one that is more reasonable for him and his wife, and kid, and cut their expenses by not spending $200 a week on restaurants... and be fine. $500 a month needs to go to paying off credit cards since it has a 21% interest, and he will be debt free in 2 years, while running his own business.

The truth is, most people don't want to give anything up. He might try this out for a month or two, and give up on it... and fail, and be in debt. On the other hand, if he makes sacrifices, he will be fine. If he planned ahead and had 8 months of expenses saved up, he could have saved his current lifestyle.

For everyone else considering doing this... don't get hung up by all the success stories... you hear about those, more than the ones who failed. People who fail aren't going to be posting about it. If you decide this is for you, you need to plan ahead, you need to save up money, and you need to be smart about your finances. You can be the greatest, but without financial responsibility, you will never accomplish what you want!

Hey Iamnameless,

That's some great advice.

That's the same realization that I came to when I had the heart to heart talk with my wife.

Which is why I decided to start with writing books and creating various information products that I sell to local business owners to create credibility, pay for marketing campaigns, feed my marketing funnel AND more importantly...increase my bank account BEFORE quitting my job. I also have many backend funnels that are running for me which upsell my prospects.

(The above snapshot of my marketing plan is the golden nugget of advice I give to every one who's thinking about jumping into this field full-time...if you have a choice in the matter.)

In regards to Jimbo13, I'll just laugh that one off.

A wise man once said, "There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death."

To anyone who's looking to "jump out there", it's super-duper irresponsible to ditch your family AND your job without proper planning and a financially responsible plan in place.

That's not a gift...that's a curse.

Thanks,

Chris

No problem Dan,

Like I said...I'll laugh it off.

I got the joke, but I was a little more serious-minded about pointing everyone to the exit signs before they do some of the crazy stuff Iamnameless was talking about.

Thanks,

Chris

I think it is always wise to have a heart to heart talk with someone about plans like these.

In this case your wife. It puts it all back in perspective. We all have desires and dreams and goals and the lust for fulfilling them can blind us or at least dim the light of reality.

Thanks OP.

Thanks Chris and Iamnameless. This comes at a perfect time for me. I have been doing web design for a while and just started doing the SEO, offline stuff. It is going well and I don't have enough hours in the day to cover my clients, my day job and family, but I am making it work. I want to make the jump, but know I can't right now. Gotta stay smart and know when the right time truly is.

Great advice both of you.

The key to any offline or online marketing is keeping it outsourced or automated.

The most important thing to take away from this is simply having proper planning and making sure whatever solution or business you have setup for offline marketing is long term and consistent.

Sound advice with the whole panning thing.