Right off the bat, I want to say I’m hardly an expert in jobs, having never had one. I’ve always done my own thing BUT it’s important to understand that my situation may very well not apply to you.

Keep in mind, I’m from Eastern Europe, and that made my decision of doing my own thing a lot easier.

When you know your country is not exactly able to put amazing employment opportunities on the table, taking the leap and becoming an entrepreneur or something else along those lines… is not much of a leap, really, because you’re not exactly giving up or risking all that much.

What I’m trying to say is that it’s a lot easier to be brave when you don’t have all that much to lose 🙂

Sure, the idea of following your dreams and all that sounds great, especially if you’ve just watched a convincing motivational video or whatever. But in the real world, things are a bit more pragmatic than that. You know, questions such as :

1. What are you giving up to pursue the new journey? There’s a huge difference between walking away from a six figure job and saying no to Eastern European job perspectives… which are not exactly in six figure territory!
2. What other obligations do you have? Once again, it’s easier to take chances and do your own thing when you’re single than it is for someone who has four kids
3. Is whatever it is you’re thinking about giving your job up for something you actually love doing? Nowadays, strangely enough, entrepreneurship became “cool” and many people decide to pursue this path not because it genuinely represents them but because they want to live the proverbial dream… even if its not their dream
4. If the occupation you want to quit your job for, domaining for example, involves working from home… is this lifestyle right for you? If you’re an extrovert for example, being alone all day might not be the most amazing decision in the world

… and so on.

It’s not my intention to turn this into a demotivational post, not at all.

I simply want to point out that a decision such as quitting your job to do your own thing is an unbelievably complex one.

Am I saying you shouldn’t do it?

Of course not! I’m simply saying you should do it for the right reasons.

Maybe because you love it.

Perhaps because it’s a genuinely awesome opportunity.

Or because you’re now financially secure enough to give it a try (for example, having a robust buffer fund at your disposal just in case it takes a long time until your new project spreads its wings) and can do your thing without putting your family at risk.

Fair enough?