If I had to quit a 9-to-5 job, this is how I’d do it

8 must-follow steps before you call it quits

I quit my 9-to-5 job back in 2016. I was frustrated and unhappy with my job of seven years so I pulled the plug and it changed my life forever.

Before getting to that point, I made sure to prepare as much as possible and I followed these 8 steps before giving my boss my two weeks notice.

If I had to do it all over again, I totally would, 100%. Here are 8 steps to follow before quitting your day job.

The 8 Step Recipe for Quitting Your Job

This is the process I followed when I quit my day job six years ago and I’d follow this recipe again today.

Step 1: Start before your stop

What are you quitting for? Do you want to start a business? Become a freelancer? Take a year off to go travel abroad?

Whatever path you’ll be taking in place of your job, get started with it before you actually quit.

For example, I left my 9-to-5 job for entrepreneurship. I started my business about a year and a half before I quit.

I ramped up that company to replace my day job income and when I quit I was actually making more than my job so the transition income-wise was a lot smoother.

If you have the opportunity to do this, I’d recommend it.

• Get experience in your project
• Start making replacement income ASAP alongside your 9-to-5 job
• Figure out if you really like what you’re doing and if you can do it long-term

Step 2: Do your research

When you leave your 9-to-5 job, a lot of your perks are going away, some of which you might not even be thinking about.

• Health/dental/vision insurance
• Life insurance
• Access to company amenities like fitness center memberships
• Company discounts
• Company car
• Freebies you get as an employee like free access to tools, resources, software, etc.
• Tuition reimbursement or student loan payoff

In this area, review your benefits so you are fully aware of what you’ll be losing.

Then find replacements for these benefits if you so choose.

When I did this, I had a very short gap (1–2 weeks) before my new benefits kicked in (health insurance) and my company also offered COBRA which I could have used during your transition.

Step 3: Develop a long-term outlook

Think about the long-term picture.

Picture yourself next year, in three years, five years, etc.

Make sure your choice to leave your 9-to-5 job will make you happy in the long term. Sometimes you just don’t know until you experience it.

What if you decide to quit your job to explore the world but after 6 months you get tired of the travel. What happens next?

Think about this.

Step 4: Make a plan

Craft your plan. My action plan held me over for so long.

It was something I looked forward to.

I looked back on my plan almost daily, envisioning my dream life as an entrepreneur and making tweaks and changes as time passed.

Consider:

• How much money you want to have saved
• Benefits you’ll need for yourself/your family
• Where you’ll be living
• What expenses you’ll have for your personal life/business
• And more!

Step 5: Make a backup plan

What’s your backup plan?

What if this thing you want to pursue beyond your day job falls through? What’s next?

Will you get another job? Work for a friend? Crash on your parents house until you figure it out?

Make this plan.

Step 6: Save 6 months worth of expenses

Put money in the bank. Starting with 6 months' worth of expenses is a good idea. More is better.

Even if you don’t touch the money or you think you won’t need it, it’s still good to have and at the very least, it’ll give you peace of mind and help you sleep better at night.

Step 7: Execute

Lastly, execute your plan.

This is what I did to turn my passion project into my full-time gig, replacing my day job income.

First, I started the project while I was still working. I created an e-commerce store and I still remember that first $25 sale.

Next, while I was running the store and working in my job, I ferociously saved as much as possible.

I mapped out a plan for how I will be replacing my benefits, paid down my expenses as much as possible, and created a business plan including a long-term outlook for my company.

Then, once I reached the point where my company income surpassed my day job pay, I gave my notice at work and I quit!

Step 8: Put in your notice

Put in your notice at work and as tempting as it might feel to just leave, exiting in good standing is what you should do.

You never know if life will take you back to work at that company and you don’t know if in the future you might cross paths with coworkers and you want to leave on a good note.

Now, take action

There’s the recipe to quitting your 9-to-5 job that I would follow today if I had to quit all over again.

What do you think? What would you change?

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