Many businesses have their origin in a side hustle. Sometimes the side hustle is from trying to raise extra cash, sometimes it is from chasing your passion. If you are currently in that side hustle phase, here are a few questions to consider;
- What does your employee contract say? Does your employment contract have a non-compete clause? Does it prevent you from working on your side hustle within the office premises or using office equipment? Does your employer have an, Other Business Interest (O.B.I) policy? What is your employer’s intellectual property policy on any work you create whilst being employed, in the office or using the office equipment? You want to make sure you are not contravening any of these. A possible implication of contravening such policies is that your employers may just end up owning that lucrative side hustle you have built, so watch out!
- Have you assessed your finances? You’re going to need funds for your side hustle. This means you will need to cut down your expenses so your salary can stretch further. If you intend resigning soon, you not only have to fund your side hustle but you also want to set aside some funds in savings to cushion your transition into a full-time entrepreneur. Carefully estimate all your expenses, your side hustle capital and operational needs, your savings goal, then budget accordingly.
- Are you being a good employee? Your productivity reduces at work, once you begin working on your side hustle during work hours. You shouldn’t jeopardise the success of your side hustle, by sacrificing your work hours, which might get you fired. You need to be respectful of your office hours, considering you decided to keep the job for a reason. You just need to find the time to work on your side hustle from your personal time.
- What is your tipping point? At what point do you put in your resignation letter? When you start making N100,000 weekly, when you can pay yourself a salary? When you have up to 50 customers? You need to set a goal for yourself so you can know when your hustle deserves your full attention. An equally important question to answer is, at what point do you give up? You need to equally set a goal for when you stop devoting time and resources to the side hustle in the event things don’t turn out as planned.
- Are you ready to self-disciplined? You are not going to have a reporting line anymore, no key performance indicators (KPI), no appraisals. Have you internalized the discipline of being a diligent worker without having anyone to report to? Be honest with yourself, when answering this question. If you feel you need help, before transitioning, set up an advisory board or find a partner so you can have people you are accountable to.
