March 28th.
That’s the day I fulfilled my six-week resignation period with my previous employer.
I had a great job and worked with wildly talented people at one of the top agencies in the world. But I quit.
I’m not crazy. I’m focused.
My small business, The Home T, has continued to grow and I found myself at a crossroads. I was either going to have to hire someone to continue building the business, or I was going to do it myself.
Once the thought of leaving my day job came to mind, it’s something I started to think day and night about. I also had extensive conversations with folks a lot smarter than myself to stay grounded.
It eventually became clear that breaking out on my own was the right thing to do, but it was a pretty terrifying thought. When you make a life altering decision like that all sorts of things come to mind. Some of which include:
- Where will the money come from?
- What if things dry up?
- Will my current employer be mad at me?
- Will my boss feel betrayed?
- Will the new guy I just hired land on his feet?
- Will my wife and her parents be on board?
Making the Jump
A “day job” gives you two things: structure and a steady paycheck.
Once the decision was made, it was if I took everything I’d learned thus far in life and shifted it so that the focus was on my company.
It’s quite strange at first and, in a way; you have to start looking through a completely different lens. You have to take all of your knowledge, and possibly tap experience you completely forgot you had, and shift how you think and work. It’s a heck of a ride to say the least.
I’m still a bit shy when calling myself an entrepreneur, but that’s what I am. I see opportunity and make things happen. It’s something I’ve done since I was 11 years old, and is something I’ve done at every job I’ve ever had.
The Story Continues
When I look back at the last 14 years, it’s been quite a ride. I started as a radio DJ, transitioned to marketing and PR, ran for political office, moved to NYC, got married and am now an entrepreneur.
There are plenty of defining moments that happened during all of that, and I’m happy to know that those moments will help me as I continue to grow personally and professionally.
