Before You Start
Resigning is the easiest part of starting a business, and the hardest to undo
People leave jobs to start businesses in very different ways, and they live with the decision differently. This session does not tell anyone to go or stay. It sets out what to settle before deciding, and founders who went about it in different ways describe how it went.
Explore this page6 sections
It is a decision about your household as much as your business.
A job provides a salary, but also health cover, a provident fund, a routine, a title and a place to belong. Leaving it removes all of these on one day. The business may take months to replace the salary, and rarely replaces the rest.
Speakers who went about it differently, some who resigned first, some who built on weekends for a year, some who decided not to go, are asked to describe their trade-offs. None of them offers a rule. Each had a household with its own commitments.
This session is a way of making the decision deliberately. It is not career or financial advice. Where law or tax is involved, it names what to check and whom to ask.
What to settle before you decide
36 topics across 7 areas. Seven questions, with the money first because it limits the rest.
The MoneyHow long, and on what.6
- Monthly household costs, written out
- Savings you could use without touching emergency money
- Income from anyone else in the household, and its stability
- EMIs and other commitments that continue regardless
- Time from first customer to first payment received
- What you would do if the business paid nothing for a year
What the Job Gives You Besides SalaryEasy to miss until the day after.5
Ask the insurer about an individual health policy before you resign, because waiting periods and age affect terms. Check EPFO's current rules before withdrawing or transferring provident fund, as they have been revised in recent years.
- Group health cover for you and the family
- Provident fund contributions, which stop with the employer's
- Life or accident cover through the employer
- Reimbursements, allowances and bonuses you count on
- A record of employment that helps with loans and visas
The ContractRead it before you tell anyone.5
- Notice period, and whether it can be shortened or bought out
- Clauses restricting work for customers, suppliers or competitors
- Confidentiality and ownership of anything you built while employed
- Rules about outside work or a side business during employment
- Dues, bonuses or clawbacks linked to the date you leave
If anything in the contract is unclear, take it to a lawyer before acting on it.
Starting on the Side FirstA route many people take, with its own costs.5
- What you can test in evenings and weekends
- What cannot be tested part-time: some customers expect a full-time supplier
- Whether your employer permits it, in writing
- How long you will give it before deciding
- The risk of doing both badly
Triggers for GoingA condition, written down, instead of a feeling.5
- A number of paying customers, or a monthly revenue level
- A signed contract or an order of a stated size
- Savings reaching a stated number of months of costs
- A date, if none of these has happened by then, to reconsider
- A person you will tell when you decide
The People Around YouThey live with the decision too.5
- Telling your partner or parents what you are planning, with numbers
- What you will change at home if income drops
- Who you can ask for advice that is not simply encouragement
- How you will talk about it with colleagues and your manager
- Who you will call when it is going badly
Leaving WellYou may need these people again.5
- A resignation that is polite and brief
- A proper handover and a clear final date
- Collecting relieving and experience letters and final dues
- Not taking what belongs to the employer
- Keeping the door open: some founders go back to employment
Common regrets people describe
- Resigning before the first customer
- Not reading the contract until after
- Letting health cover lapse
- Not telling the family the real numbers
- Having no date at which to reassess
- Going part-time for years without deciding
What participants leave with
- A one-page list of conditions to meet before resigning
- A runway figure in months
- A checklist of contract points to confirm
- A plan for health cover and provident fund
- A note for the conversation at home
How the session runs
Two or three founders describe how they left, or did not: resigned first, built on the side, or decided to stay employed. They are asked to say what they would change, and to avoid presenting their route as the one to follow. The rest of the time goes to each participant's own situation in a small group. Evening or weekend sessions, in person or online.
What your students leave with
- A written list of what you need to be true before you resign
- A figure for how long your household can manage on less or no income
- A reading of your employment contract for notice, conflicts and ownership of work
- A plan for health cover, provident fund and other things a job provides
- A view on whether to start on the side first, and for how long
- A conversation to have with your family, and the questions to put in it
Scheduled sessions
Nothing scheduled yet
Sessions are arranged with a college once a date is agreed. Ask us and we will find the right person for it.
A student rather than a college? See what is coming up, or ask your placement team to host this.
Decide with the numbers, the contract and the family in front of you.
Tell us who your students are and what stage they are at. Sessions are free for participants.