Why Arnold Schwarzenegger says you should keep your full-time job when you start your own business

Because the longer you hold on to your full-time job, the more you increase your options—and preserve your power to say no.

[Photo: Getty Images]

Aspiring entrepreneurs often ask me whether they should quit their full-time jobs and go all in on starting a business. 

“Keep your job,” I always say. (That’s what I did; I worked in manufacturing for 20 years before I became an entrepreneur.) “Prove your idea for a business works. Prove you can make money. Prove you’re willing to do whatever it takes. If you’re not willing to spend nights and weekends on your startup, instead of running toward the business you feel compelled to start, you’re probably running away from a job you don’t like.”

That advice, or at least the reasoning behind it, always falls a little flat. To many people, choosing not to go all in implies a lack of belief and commitment.

That’s why, when asked, I add Arnold Schwarzenegger’s perspective to my answer. Here’s what Arnold had to say when asked about jumping off the deep end to follow your passion:

I didn’t have a Plan B, but I was also lucky that I had my other businesses. I was making money from real estate, and that gave me the power to wait for the roles I wanted. And once I did Conan, I didn’t have to worry about it.But this is why I always say don’t listen to these follow-your-passion people who tell you to quit your job and jump off the deep end. You need money, and if you quit your job, you’re going to have to make decisions you wouldn’t make otherwise in order to make money. I could say no, but only because I had my bricklaying business and then my real estate business, so I wasn’t desperate.Preserve your power to say no.

I didn’t have a Plan B, but I was also lucky that I had my other businesses. I was making money from real estate, and that gave me the power to wait for the roles I wanted. And once I did Conan, I didn’t have to worry about it.But this is why I always say don’t listen to these follow-your-passion people who tell you to quit your job and jump off the deep end. You need money, and if you quit your job, you’re going to have to make decisions you wouldn’t make otherwise in order to make money. I could say no, but only because I had my bricklaying business and then my real estate business, so I wasn’t desperate.Preserve your power to say no.

Preserving your power to say no is another reason not to quit your day job until you’ve proved your business can thrive—or at least until you see a clear, objective path to thriving.

Desperation almost always leads to making poor choices. When you need to put food on the table, you’ll take clients you know you shouldn’t—clients that will eventually cost you a lot more in time, effort, and headaches than they are worth. You’ll cut prices to levels you know you shouldn’t, and then struggle to raise prices later. You’ll hire employees you know you shouldn’t, and suffer the culture debt that results for months or years to come.

You’ll take on an investor—or financing—you know you shouldn’t, but because money is so tight, you feel you have no choice.

Arnold Schwarzenegger

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