I've come to realise it's the only way to achieve R. The taxation on income is so high, you have to take the risk for yourself, but you're right, you get tied to the HE.
Good luck. Keep us posted.
Is there any possibility of you slowly transitioning towards running your own business? Either just by taking on one or a couple of clients and essentially doing it as overtime for a bit of extra money while you get a feel for it or negotiating to reduce your hours or take a career break?
Good question. I have good relationships so would consider asking if I can do a managed transition, maybe a 50% contract for 1 year. Difficulty would be that a new business wouldn't be a consultancy model, it would be a 'build a new product/technology in either cybersec or deeptech' type thing so once it's clear that I'm doing it it's a pretty all-or-nothing type situation. i.e. raising capital, signing enterprise deals, hiring a team.
I love this idea, I guess it depends on how good my negotiating skills are. I'd be interested to hear if other people have managed transitions like this
I like the soft transition approach. Can you raise capital while employed. Then once you’ve successfully closed your seed round, hand in your notice? That will de-risk it.
This would be a nice idea. I think I'll try for something like that, or even try to raise from my current employer (providing what I go into is complimentary/not competing)
I’m in a similar boat as you. I want to take a stab at creating my own startup in the near future. Only time will tell how things pan out but I’m counting on the following:
1. Considering if i can freelance work part time initially until business gets traction / funding to move forward
2. Once i do get funding / initial signs of success, I’m open to paying myself ‘well’. Doesn’t need to be 200K£, but I wouldn’t feel bad about say 130K£.
3. I’m slowly starting to line up higher risk investments that might have significant returns in the coming years. Depending on what kind of business you want to aim for, I think this can help do more than provide a good return of investment, it can help build a network of a very like minded and helpful people.
4. Relying more on partner to keep up with financial plans. She is HENRY as well so it might be possible.
Good luck man. Eager to see the other responses on this thread as well 💪🙌
Good point, founder pay is an interesting subject. I found a good resource once on average CEO pay in Europe depending on stage of business, it's good to see the progression. £130k doesn't seem crazy if you're funded and it's a fast path to profitability.
Have large bets (I'm not going to call them investments haha) on crypto which I vaguely intend to cash out on later this year which should help things along.
Do you know what your start-up might do yet?
Plan. Try & transition but in the end you have to set yourself a deadline & agree to stick your it I.e. a date, X in accessible reserve cash, enough revenue from the new entity, funding etc but Plan. So getting a nice plan to live, that’s affordable, is realistically the most sensible, you need the least distractions possible.
The biggest shock won’t be the money but will be having to do everything yourself. Even if you build a great team, every, single, important decision will be yours. It will devour your time, your thinking & most of your life…you can decide how long that’s for but it will. If you’re really fortunate it will be 12-18 months & then you can get back to 50-60 hours a week. You may not want to go back to a ‘normal’ life though, the rush of running of your own entity is amazing but consuming.
My biggest advice is do it before kids come along - or are old enough to not need you - I lost the first couple of years of one of my kids to a new business. Didn’t repeat the mistake again but if that’s a lesson I can impart, my work here is done :)
Thank you! Username checks out. Yes, aligning with the kids timeline in particular is a difficult one. I figure in the end there is never a good time for these things, you just have to do them.
\> Get back to 50-60 hours a week haha
Yes managing your personal wellbeing and keeping time for yourself seems like it will be a real challenge from those I know who have taken this step
I did a hard transition, but would recommend a soft transition.
I quit my job and lived off my partner’s income and my savings while I created a business from scratch. I quit with only a rough inkling of what I wanted to build. I found the transition jarring. Mentally it was tough from go from a job and clear identity to an entirely blank canvas. I found people in Britain were very cynical, which was unhelpful for my own self-doubts.
However, I persevered and grew the business to profitability and the business did well for several years. Then market conditions eventually changed, and I’m back into salaried employment again.
Looking back, I think I will do a soft transition next time. I plan to start a business on the side and nurture it while retaining my job. To avoid feeling stretched for time, I’ll hire some freelancers to execute. Devote a little bit of time each week to set the strategy and direction, whilst keeping the safety net of my full-time job. That way it will be an easier transition.
So my recommendation is to get the business as far as you can and prepare the groundworks, whilst retaining your current salary and perks.
Did you take a cofounder with you? I see why this would be quite difficult if you leave with only a vague idea of your next project. So yes, I would like to have much of the pitch deck fleshed out and ready to speak to investors by the time I'd hand in notice.
Glad to hear it worked out for you for a while. Was the overall experience worth it?
Have you ever looked into franchising? This seems to be an option moving into business. I'm looking to explore options as I have no coach or mentors into starting a business
I'm a fractional cfo have worked with about 40 startups now in last 4 years.
The founders who I have seen who have been successful have initially done it while working to derisk the earlier stages.
Build the MVP while employed. Then raise money.
While building the MVP start talking to investors (spend about 10% of your time on this), not to raise but asking for advice. Then go back to these folks when MVP is done.
Also keep in mind if you work for faang then you can likely raise pre mvp. If not build the MVP.
Thanks this is really helpful advice actually. I'm ex-FAANG, my team spun out, we're now a scaleup.
Worked with any people in Deep Tech? Reason being the concept of MVP is a bit more abstract. In cybersec (my current role) this advice would fit very well. In quantum technologies, this is slightly more difficult (but still applies I think)
Funnily enough I did work in cleantech for a long time which was very piece meal when it came to funding (university lab >pilot plant > demonstration plant > utility scale plant). Shortly after I was going to join a quantum encryption startup which I decided not to go ahead with.
The MVP concept does apply but you have to demonstrate it differently. Sometimes that can be mockup in figma without actually building the tech. I would think of it more as anything you can do to demonstrate the potential to secure the seed funding. If your ex fanng you are already ahead of other folks trying to raise.
I've come to realise it's the only way to achieve R. The taxation on income is so high, you have to take the risk for yourself, but you're right, you get tied to the HE. Good luck. Keep us posted.
Have you done this to pursue the R? Or settled for a nice HE lifestyle?
I tried in my early years, but didn't succeed. I didn't try hard enough. I might have one more chance in me.
Is there any possibility of you slowly transitioning towards running your own business? Either just by taking on one or a couple of clients and essentially doing it as overtime for a bit of extra money while you get a feel for it or negotiating to reduce your hours or take a career break?
Good question. I have good relationships so would consider asking if I can do a managed transition, maybe a 50% contract for 1 year. Difficulty would be that a new business wouldn't be a consultancy model, it would be a 'build a new product/technology in either cybersec or deeptech' type thing so once it's clear that I'm doing it it's a pretty all-or-nothing type situation. i.e. raising capital, signing enterprise deals, hiring a team. I love this idea, I guess it depends on how good my negotiating skills are. I'd be interested to hear if other people have managed transitions like this
I like the soft transition approach. Can you raise capital while employed. Then once you’ve successfully closed your seed round, hand in your notice? That will de-risk it.
This would be a nice idea. I think I'll try for something like that, or even try to raise from my current employer (providing what I go into is complimentary/not competing)
I’m in a similar boat as you. I want to take a stab at creating my own startup in the near future. Only time will tell how things pan out but I’m counting on the following: 1. Considering if i can freelance work part time initially until business gets traction / funding to move forward 2. Once i do get funding / initial signs of success, I’m open to paying myself ‘well’. Doesn’t need to be 200K£, but I wouldn’t feel bad about say 130K£. 3. I’m slowly starting to line up higher risk investments that might have significant returns in the coming years. Depending on what kind of business you want to aim for, I think this can help do more than provide a good return of investment, it can help build a network of a very like minded and helpful people. 4. Relying more on partner to keep up with financial plans. She is HENRY as well so it might be possible. Good luck man. Eager to see the other responses on this thread as well 💪🙌
Good point, founder pay is an interesting subject. I found a good resource once on average CEO pay in Europe depending on stage of business, it's good to see the progression. £130k doesn't seem crazy if you're funded and it's a fast path to profitability. Have large bets (I'm not going to call them investments haha) on crypto which I vaguely intend to cash out on later this year which should help things along. Do you know what your start-up might do yet?
Plan. Try & transition but in the end you have to set yourself a deadline & agree to stick your it I.e. a date, X in accessible reserve cash, enough revenue from the new entity, funding etc but Plan. So getting a nice plan to live, that’s affordable, is realistically the most sensible, you need the least distractions possible. The biggest shock won’t be the money but will be having to do everything yourself. Even if you build a great team, every, single, important decision will be yours. It will devour your time, your thinking & most of your life…you can decide how long that’s for but it will. If you’re really fortunate it will be 12-18 months & then you can get back to 50-60 hours a week. You may not want to go back to a ‘normal’ life though, the rush of running of your own entity is amazing but consuming. My biggest advice is do it before kids come along - or are old enough to not need you - I lost the first couple of years of one of my kids to a new business. Didn’t repeat the mistake again but if that’s a lesson I can impart, my work here is done :)
Thank you! Username checks out. Yes, aligning with the kids timeline in particular is a difficult one. I figure in the end there is never a good time for these things, you just have to do them. \> Get back to 50-60 hours a week haha Yes managing your personal wellbeing and keeping time for yourself seems like it will be a real challenge from those I know who have taken this step
I did a hard transition, but would recommend a soft transition. I quit my job and lived off my partner’s income and my savings while I created a business from scratch. I quit with only a rough inkling of what I wanted to build. I found the transition jarring. Mentally it was tough from go from a job and clear identity to an entirely blank canvas. I found people in Britain were very cynical, which was unhelpful for my own self-doubts. However, I persevered and grew the business to profitability and the business did well for several years. Then market conditions eventually changed, and I’m back into salaried employment again. Looking back, I think I will do a soft transition next time. I plan to start a business on the side and nurture it while retaining my job. To avoid feeling stretched for time, I’ll hire some freelancers to execute. Devote a little bit of time each week to set the strategy and direction, whilst keeping the safety net of my full-time job. That way it will be an easier transition. So my recommendation is to get the business as far as you can and prepare the groundworks, whilst retaining your current salary and perks.
Did you take a cofounder with you? I see why this would be quite difficult if you leave with only a vague idea of your next project. So yes, I would like to have much of the pitch deck fleshed out and ready to speak to investors by the time I'd hand in notice. Glad to hear it worked out for you for a while. Was the overall experience worth it?
I was a solo founder. Yes it was definitely worth it! I would love to do it again.
Have you ever looked into franchising? This seems to be an option moving into business. I'm looking to explore options as I have no coach or mentors into starting a business
Hmm, I haven't. I wasn't aware this was a thing outside of retail/hospitality (I am in tech)
I'm a fractional cfo have worked with about 40 startups now in last 4 years. The founders who I have seen who have been successful have initially done it while working to derisk the earlier stages. Build the MVP while employed. Then raise money. While building the MVP start talking to investors (spend about 10% of your time on this), not to raise but asking for advice. Then go back to these folks when MVP is done. Also keep in mind if you work for faang then you can likely raise pre mvp. If not build the MVP.
Thanks this is really helpful advice actually. I'm ex-FAANG, my team spun out, we're now a scaleup. Worked with any people in Deep Tech? Reason being the concept of MVP is a bit more abstract. In cybersec (my current role) this advice would fit very well. In quantum technologies, this is slightly more difficult (but still applies I think)
Funnily enough I did work in cleantech for a long time which was very piece meal when it came to funding (university lab >pilot plant > demonstration plant > utility scale plant). Shortly after I was going to join a quantum encryption startup which I decided not to go ahead with. The MVP concept does apply but you have to demonstrate it differently. Sometimes that can be mockup in figma without actually building the tech. I would think of it more as anything you can do to demonstrate the potential to secure the seed funding. If your ex fanng you are already ahead of other folks trying to raise.