Who works 9-5 anymore? The factory jobs are all gone.
Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
11–20 of 181 posts
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#12I left my cushy job two months ago. For years I tried to build various products (SaaS) on the side to facilitate the move. I was never able to get enough traction mostly because I wasn't able to devote enough time. I realized that I'd be never really be free unless I took a leap. I'm launching my first official product in Sept. and have been consulting to pay the bills. The consulting has been good...perhaps a little…
"unless I took a leap."
Yes, exactly. Kudos to you for doing this. Taking the initial leap is the hardest part. Good luck!!
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#13My story. I worked my ass off for 10+ years, saved a little bit of extra cash after paying off most loans and then bought an online business that I was interested in. I tried doing both for 2 months in parallel. One day I woke up and said "F*k this. I am done. Gotta quit". I then went to my boss and gave him the notice. I did calculate my risks as the business was just bringing in enough to keep me floating (with 2 k…
Very cool! I quit my cushy 9-5 about a year ago and have been contracting off and on since then. It has been amazing and I realized I can never do the 9-5 thing again. I hope to start my own business at some point. The problem is... I haven't had a good idea yet...
I have been thinking about buying an existing online business if I can't think of anything. When I look into it though I am completely in over my head. Do you have any recommended resources for learning about that sort of thing?
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#14I left my cushy job two months ago. For years I tried to build various products (SaaS) on the side to facilitate the move. I was never able to get enough traction mostly because I wasn't able to devote enough time. I realized that I'd be never really be free unless I took a leap. I'm launching my first official product in Sept. and have been consulting to pay the bills. The consulting has been good...perhaps a little…
What kind of consulting do you do?
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#15My story. I worked my ass off for 10+ years, saved a little bit of extra cash after paying off most loans and then bought an online business that I was interested in. I tried doing both for 2 months in parallel. One day I woke up and said "F*k this. I am done. Gotta quit". I then went to my boss and gave him the notice. I did calculate my risks as the business was just bringing in enough to keep me floating (with 2 k…
Very cool! I quit my cushy 9-5 about a year ago and have been contracting off and on since then. It has been amazing and I realized I can never do the 9-5 thing again. I hope to start my own business at some point. The problem is... I haven't had a good idea yet... I have been thinking about buying an existing online business if I can't think of anything. When I look into it though I am completely in over my head. Do…
feinternational.com has some really good articles on buying/selling online businesses. But most importantly, you need to also create your own criteria first. I also wrote a blog post on this topic with my thoughts. Feel free to take a look for some pointers.
http://yashchandra.com/2016/04/17/how-to-buy-an-online-busin...
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#16Not quite answering your question, but I quit my great tech job and decided to burn my savings and go into debt by going to law school. At least consider that maybe it's not the 9-5 that's the problem, but the line of work itself. Being good at something doesn't mean you're passionate or motivated for it. Depending on the kind of person you are, lack of passion/motivation can be an insurmountable obstacle to being th…
I actually agree.
I have come to realize that 9 to 5 is not horrible, the key is self-fulfillment and happiness. For most people they will be unhappy regardless of the state of finances or work they do.
I realize that even if I have my own business it does not mean I won't have to deal with things I don't like. What attracts me though is the financial independence, having control of my future instead of someone else having control of it.
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#17I'm just opting in the 9-5 :) Not everybody has what it takes to run a business. I'll do two things: - Build and MVP and try to find paying customers. Once the money is flowing in, I might take a venture again into the startup world. - Use a few hours / day to build the thing and start to look for a business co-founder.
Agreed - I actually _like_ 9-5. It's nice to have a break now and again, but I like daily routine of going to an office, seeing colleagues, etc.
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#18I didn't escape my 9-to-5 job to start my own business (hoping to, eventually) but I did become full time work-from-home which is about 75% as good. I pretty much set my own hours, start work between 8am and 9am and end between 5pm and 6pm. Some days I really get nothing done -- right now we're in the midst of buying a house, and I must confess I'm spending lots of time communicating with the lender and broker, packi…
I can also work from home pretty much every day. I avoid it because I have 4 kids at home, and it's kind of a zoo.
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#19Lived in parents house while working for a few years to save on rent. Kept expenses vey low. Saved enough for business school tuition. Hated business school and dropped out. Was left with a wad of cash. Started business since I'd learn more from starting a business than staying in school. Best decision of my career by far.
Is your business profitable? If not how much longer can you sustain yourself?
Re: Ask HN: How Did You Escape 9 to 5?
#20Who works 9-5 anymore? The factory jobs are all gone.
I actually just quit a factory job to start software dev. The conditions and pay were terrible at my factory gig so I started learning to code in my spare time. Probably few people on this forum would be connected with people who recently have worked in factories. But those jobs do exist, and man do they SUCK!
Especially when the people in software aren't developing products for you because they have never met you, i.e. don't believe you exist. There are good things and bad things about the homogeneity of SV culture, and outside perspectives, especially from the working class, don't often make it past a seed round.