So you’ve got a fantastic small business startup running alongside your career job and you’re considering packing the career in to take your startup business to the next level. Before you do, you want some re-assurance that you’re doing the right thing and making a sound decision for both your future and your families. No doubt you’ve had the conversation with your family or perhaps just considered it in your own mind or through physical planning.

Prior to even thinking about packing the day job in, you’ve been experiencing good levels of success with your own startup business, sales have been growing month by month and the challenges have remained fresh and interesting. Your profits are increasing as your sales tally and are starting to provide a very nice residual second income. You have also planned what you would do with the small business startup and where you would take it should you be doing it full-time. All that remains is making that last choice over whether you’re going to go for it and pack the career job in and go it alone or whether you are going to continue as you are by using it as a secondary source of income. Sounds familiar? ..

The law states that you are perfectly entitled to run a small business - or any size business in fact - alongside your career job just as long as you declare the income you are making to the relevant tax authorities. For the UK that would be the Inland Revenue through the self-assessment system. If you haven’t done this already and have been running a business for longer than three months, you are actually breaking the law and are strongly advised to consult with HMRC immediately and ensure your business is registered for self-assessment. So the question still remains over whether you are willing to risk it all and go it alone or stay employed and have the security of a long term job. But then, the flip side of that argument is just how secure your so called career job actually is given today’s financial climate? For arguments sake let us say that your job is secure and your small startup business is booming - where next?

Firstly, avoid telling your boss at all costs that you even have a small business running alongside your day job let alone that your planning on dumping him for a sweeter deal elsewhere. The chances are he/she will not share the same enthusiasm that you do and it may even lead to more problematic circumstances. It’s difficult to keep something from your employer, especially if you have a good relationship with them but you have to keep it to yourself and stay under the radar at all costs.

Secondly, don’t take the decision to tell your boss too lightly. Once you have told him/her the chances are you are going to become pretty unpopular pretty quickly, so avoid saying anything at all until you decide its time to leave. In fact, you don’t even need to tell them the reason you’re leaving. I guess it depends just how much respect you have for your employer, the chances are most wouldn’t divulge the real reason anyway!

Once you’ve told your boss that you have your own small business and are considering going it alone, there is no turning back. Consult our Small Business Startup Checklist before you think about making that call.