Before you quit your job to start a company

Name one potential customer and the problem you believe they have. Record what they do today, who makes the buying decision, and what a paid first engagement would involve. Interest, a compliment and a payment are different observations.

Choose a test that fits around your current obligations: a customer conversation, a manually delivered service or a small paid pilot. Write down what would count as progress before running it. If the result is weak, preserve that result instead of changing the success criterion afterwards.

List household expenses and obligations independently of business spending. Connect the two budgets through the amount you expect to pay yourself. Money reserved for taxes, debt payments or an emergency is not available twice.

Run an estimate with income you already have, then a second estimate without the uncommitted customer revenue. A forecast should expose assumptions; it cannot produce a universally safe quit date.

Describe what full-time availability would let you do that the current arrangement prevents. Compare it with a smaller alternative, such as reducing scope or taking a short period of leave where that is available.

Set a date to review the evidence and a cash boundary you will revisit before making further commitments. Decide what you would do if demand remains unclear. A return to employment or a different experiment can be a planned option rather than a surprise.