Sorry, to clarify, the "think" part of the headline was actually due to the contingency that this friend send me the contract in time for me to read it, approve, and quit before the end of the day. It had nothing to do with uncertainty.
Just to clarify, I have already done a personal risk analysis. I have discussed this decision with my family, my friends, my business partners, and my mentor over the past week and a half. I have a few month's savings already, and I am well-qualified for many positions that are open in the area should I need to take one.
As I stated in the first line of the post, I've already made up my mind, and I was just soliciting additional feedback from a group of peers, whom I trust. I'm sure everyone else here would agree that getting feedback from as many sources as possible, is on the contrary, a very good "strategem" for any decision (btw, the word you're looking for is "strategy," a "stratagem" is a type of strategy used to deceive someone).
And finally, I see that you are new to this group. From experience I can tell you that this group is far from being anonymous. We are a very tight-nit, common-interest-bound group of thoughtful and contributing individuals.
"We are a very tight-nit, common-interest-bound group of thoughtful and contributing individuals"
your account is 4 days old - plus there's no visible email, name or any other sort of id in any account... So yes, I'd say you're pretty much anonymous (like most people here)....
These are actually my 3rd and 4th companies. I know that roller coaster well, and I love every minute of it. Unlike the droll monotony of mid- to large-company employment.
I agree that there is certainly much more to learn. However, I feel that running my own few companies over the past 6 years (on the side) has taught me much more (and much more quickly) than employment has to teach. My recent elevator pitch contest wins and entrepreneur of the year award are also good motivation for me to go ahead and take the plunge. I think it's time for me to have as much confidence in myself as others seem to have.
OK. That's fine. I wasn't really thinking about learning business things. I was thinking about learning engineering things, since you said you were ME and EE. Or are you going to bail on all that knowledge and just do software? If not, how many trips to China has your company sent you on? None? Your next one will. It's truly amazing to go over there and learn what really motivated and organized people can accomplish (with $100 per week wages)
How many times have the products you designed shown up on store shelves in multiple countries? Every country has different regulations you have to conform to, and knowing what those are will come in handy for your own company. Stay with a big company a while to learn the hoops to jump through to get your compliance certifications in Japan, EU, Canada, Australia, etc.
Ah yes, very good point. Only been overseas a couple times. Though some of the designs I've worked on have probably ended up in the very car you're driving. I've been in the industry for about 6 years total now (on and off, so really maybe 3.5 years solid).
I don't think you can ever bail on all the knowledge you've acquired, but it can easily be applied to other areas outside of engineering.
It sounds like you definitely know your stuff and continue to enjoy the passion for engineering that I lost a while back. I'd much rather depend on products designed by someone with your enthusiasm than those designed by the majority of people I know who are just going through the motions. Good luck in your career!
He is taking a risk of getting fired already. Depending on whether the boss likes surprises and/or if you want to not blow up your bridges, asking for a leave of absence is a subtle way of giving notice before you give two weeks notice e.g. after they come back with - 'Sorry, we can't do it' - 'Thank you for taking the time. I've thought about this a long time. I'd like to tender my resignation'.
Student loans can be deferred or stretched out for decades, plus the interest is deductible (for some folks). I wouldn't worry about them unless they're huge (100K+).
You are absolutely right. I think my main hang-up is the guilt I feel for quitting my job when so many of my friends cannot even get a job in the first place. I think maybe it's just simply unfounded.
And yes, everyone here is very good at pushing for risk and action over all else (myself included), and that is exactly why I posted here. Though, even if I had gotten the opposite reaction, I probably would have said you guys don't know what you're talking about, and then taken the plunge anyway ;-)
Our company has a hiring freeze in place. If someone quits, then the office loses that job permanently. If the person is fired, then when the hiring freeze gets lifted, then we may replace them. Things might be different at your company. Ours is a Fortune 500 company.
My job is pretty depressing and very boring. They also have a hiring freeze in place. My job is very secure because I do things for the company that requires a skill that isn't easy to find.
Unfortunately however I have no college degree. I got lucky landing this job straight out of high school and even though I'm pushing 5 years of experience from this job I really doubt I could easily find another one outside of retail/fast food even if the market wasn't the way it was.
I'm in a similar boat, was mulling over it hard because of the economy and people having problems finding jobs, but the last time I went out on my own, I made it work and I had a lot less going for me back then. So I felt like there was no better time and motivation to deal with the roller coaster of working for yourself is something you have to be mentally prepared for and I am now.
Good luck and don't second-guess yourself, just make sure you've got enough fail safes in place to make a go for it and don't look back.
