How to Plan Quitting Your Day Job

Quitting a day job is an aspiration every person who ventures into the freelance space desires. But to take a decision to actually quit a day job is not as easy as one may think. When we take up freelance writing assignments we believe that we would soon be making money enough to be able to focus on it full time.

Sooner than later, reality hits us hard. Even after months of aspiring to build up a freelance career we realize that we are not confident enough to quit our day job. Our day job continues to be our primary source of income and we can ill afford to lose it. I have been trying to build up my freelance writing career for over the past year. During this past year, I have landed up with my own set of assignments; big and small. But even after a year of effort I have not landed myself on a terrain where I can even confidently convince myself (forget my family) that I must now venture out as a fulltime freelance writer. I still continue to lookout for that right kind of assignment or writing job which will give me the confidence to quit my day job.

As part of my New Year resolution, I decided to closely evaluate my situation and draw out a list of factors that I must consider critical on the pathway to pursue my dream of being independent and freelance. I am listing them down here as it may be of some help to others like me who intend to build up their freelance work profile and desire to go independent sometime soon.

Don't crib about your day job: You want to leave your day job; that's understood, but that does not give you the right to keep cribbing about it. It does not give you the right to say how silly your current job is or how miserably out-of-focus your existing boss is. I have known people who have done this for years and still continue to be in the same profile and job, under the same boss. Trust me it helps not to crib. Remember, the more you crib about your day job, the more miserable you will feel about yourself. Your cribbing will soon become a mechanism that your psyche adopts to throw out its frustration. It will not leave you feeling good it will instead leave you feeling more in a sense of ruin.

Work harder on your day job: Rather than cribbing about your day job, focus your energies on working much harder. Imagine you have participated in this marathon race. You have ran for miles together, maintained a steady pace, focused your energies on each step you took not thinking of how long the race would be, you knew it would be long drawn and now when you see the finish line just ahead of you, you assimilate all your energies, take a breath and dash for it in full charge. You have begun the countdown on your day job, now it is time for you to give it that last bit of your full charged up energy. I agree that there is a temptation to do a shoddy job. A sense of who cares now, I am going to leave anyway. But who knows, the chances are that your company may be your client someday. So remember to leave that lasting impression.

Remember what you have done on your day job: As you give your day job that last bit of effort always remember, to remember what you have done on your last job. This is particularly important if you are open about a writing portfolio you want to handle as a freelancer. You may have worked as a secretary or an assistant or in accounts or operations. You are pretty good at your job and have learnt a few lessons which you can share on the World Wide Web. Few articles that you can write on or about that might prove to be a stream of passive income for you. So carry the knowledge of your work as you leave.

Leave your contacts intact: Unless you are leaving your day job after a fight with your boss, leave your contacts in your day job intact. It helps. They could be a source of recommendation for you, or even better they may offer you a freelance job themselves. To take it or not is your choice, but it always helps to leave your contact base at your day job intact. Remember, getting into the freelance fold means you are venturing out to do your own business and in business contacts do matter.

Remember to network: The way to growth lies in the art of networking. Like it or not you have to network. You have to tell others that you write. There is nothing to be shy about it. Yes if you have a boss of will sack you the next day, then you need to take some precautions. But I am sure you have your own circle of contacts who would want to see you succeed. Let them know. Even the best of services wouldn't have succeeded without some amount of word of mouth networking. The Internet is a good place to build up your network. Try Facebook, try Orkut, Myspace or Twitter. These social networking medium will help you spread a word about you faster than you think.

Save, save and save: Now this is the most important aspect. Going freelance means no steady payments in your account. Payments would get irregular. Your dues will still continue to have dates. You will have to pay your rent, electricity bills and Internet charges by the date. Remember it is going to get messy if you do not have the habit of saving. Financial management or mis-management can make or break your freelance career. It is therefore the most important aspect of building up your freelance career. Think why it is taking you so much time to quit your day job. Chances are that if you have had the money you would have quit your job today. But you cannot, because you are not confident with your finances. Learn it, practice it, it's not rocket science we are speaking about. It's only about your money.

Keep building your writing skills: I am sure you know what this one means. Remember with your freelance career you are intending to venture out into a creative space. Creativity requires nourishment. An artist has to practice. Rare are the people who can get on stage and go straight to perform in front of the audience. I believed that I wrote every well, till my articles for a first few set of clients began getting rejected. That is when I began writing for content websites like Associated Content, it helped. They have content editors who assess your articles and pass on a few advises. I never wrote for practice earlier. I never revised my first draft and then when I started practicing the art of writing I realized how helpful it was. Keep building your skills, your vocabulary. Read as much as you can and you will soon realize that you are brimming with ideas and thoughts.

Keep building your portfolio: Even as you decide to quit your day job for a fulltime freelance career, keep in mind that you got to build up your clientele. Keep looking out to take assignments. Don't wait to take them on till you are completely out of your day job. That would never happen. You got to start building up your portfolio. Set the moral dilemma aside. Chances are that even your boss began conceptualizing the idea of starting your present company when he was working on his earlier job. There are no full stops here, there are only commas. Remember that and act in line. Your day job maybe grilling, your boss maybe perpetually nibbling your nerves, never mind, keep building your portfolio, your clients and even if means burning the mid-night lamp deliver on your client commitments. You have to go through the churn and you will be successful. More over some fees will also help you to save for any dry days ahead.