Should I tell my boss about my startup?

[bacterozoid]

Hey guys - back with yet another question: When should I tell my boss about my startup...or should I?

I've been doing some reading and thinking, but cannot come up with a clear answer. I work for a business of about 50 people right now. I'm one member of a small group of programmers. The rest of the employees are all doing other things. I have a great relationship with my coworkers and my boss. It's very casual and we all talk freely to each other.

Learning the field that our company works in takes 6 months...about a year to be proficient. I've been with the company for the past 2.5 years and consider myself an asset. I take part in a lot of the high level design, do a good deal of programming, and help manage some other people. Would it be the end of the world if I left? No, but it would hurt the company.

So, that aside...should I tell my boss I have a startup? It doesn't compete at all with the company's business, and there's no worries about IP rights or anything like that. I document all the work I do and do it all away from the office.

What I need is the ability to take one afternoon off a week so I have some business hours that I can schedule meetings and go out and try to sell my product. (Edit: This is hard to do without telling my boss what I'm up to.) I have no problems making up missed time. My hours are flexible, but I need to be there during the day as much as I can.

I want to be honest, and I know my boss will be happy for me...but he has a business to run, too. Advice?

[greenoak]

I would vote for .. YES TELL HIM.... HE WILL FIND OUT ANYWAY AND THEN YOU MIght LOOK BAD or at least like you were hiding something from him....... hopefully he will also think it doesnt have anything to do with competing with him or mis using any of his assets..
as an employer , if it wasnt in competition, my other worry would be that i would lose a good employee.... also i would not like anything behind my back.and wonder why it was behlnd my back.....especially if i thought we had a good open relationship..

[KristineS]

I'd say tell him. I'm a writer and a marketer and that's my job at the company where I work. I do, however, freelance on occasion, and I tell my boss when one of the side jobs results from a company connection. As long as it doesn't interfere with what I do while I'm on the clock, it has never been an issue. I'd rather be honest than try to hide things. Plus, it's better to know up front if your boss has a problem.

[bacterozoid]

Edit: I have the hardest time not getting duplicate posts...

[bacterozoid]

Thanks for the advice. My boss knows I (and some of my coworkers) have all done some freelance work on the side here and there. He understands that sometimes we just want to make some extra cash on the side and is fine with it. Starting a business with the intent of one day leaving the company is a little different.

I suppose I'm worried that it would somehow negatively affect me. Making up some excuse to leave early once a week is not going to go well at all. If I told my boss what was going on he might be willing to help. When it comes down to it, though, I'm basically saying "Can I have some flexible hours so that one day I can quit?".

I'm trying to convince myself that telling him is a good idea. I think it is, but there's that little "what if" voice that's ever-present.

[KMcVey]

Do you have a timeline in mind of when you would like to be leaving? I'm sure he would appreciate the advanced notice and plan accordingly. I think most employers keep in mind that people are very fluid now. There was a time when people worked for one company their whole career, but those days are gone.

[huggytree]

why would you give your boss notice that you'll most likely be quitting in the near future??? what if your startup fails? or what if your boss gets rid of you before your startup is ready for full time?

i would never tell my boss what im up to....whats the advantage? how does it help you?

keep it to yourself...

when i went into business i started part time on my days off...i expected it to be 2-3 months until i was able to go full time...8 months later i was still part time (but getting closer)....he found out and fired me 1 week later (after i trained my replacement).....he said i should have told him.....but i knew all that would have meant was i would have been fired 8 months earlier....

are you going to be a better worker with (2) full time jobs? is your boss going to be happy that your working 8 hours for him and then going home and working 4-8 hours for yourself? does over working make you a better employee?

your boss may think that your going to be taking business calls for YOUR business on his time (i did)....my old boss accused me of stealing from him (i didnt, but how does he know for sure).....your boss will make many assumptions....why do you want?

keep it to yourself until you give a 2 week notice

[bacterozoid]

Thanks for sharing an opinion on the other side. :)

I have no idea how fast I'm going to grow, but before I can quit my job I need to be able to replace my salary...and that's a significant hurdle...and there's also the possibility that it flops and I go back to a regular job.

The only thing I know is that my boss is a nice guy and he's not going to fire me. He will immediately begin considering the need to find a replacement, but he's not going to fire me as long as I work with him to ensure there's a smooth transition. That means letting him know if things are starting to go well for me so he can look for a replacement at the appropriate time.

My wife agrees with you, and I'm not going to decide tomorrow what to do. As I said in my first post, my major issue is needing some time during the day once or twice a week to handle business matters. This is a huge hurdle for me right now and is preventing me from making sales.

And then again, I could be looking at it all wrong. Maybe I should hire someone or find a friend willing to help me for free. Money is tight until I can bring in some revenue...so it's hard to pay someone for their help. I'm researching all angles.

[billbenson]

I'd take the middle of the road. Let him know that you have a side business that makes you a few bucks. Don't let him know if it is successful enough or you have the resources to quit. Since the reality is most small businesses fail, don't go around bragging about your success.

[greenoak]

as a boss, if i knew you would be leaving or even just hoping to leave it would change everything...i couldnt help it.
..but i still think h e will probably find out anyway so that has to be taken into consideration too...

[huggytree]

i still dont get why you want to tell him?

just because you 'think' your boss is nice doesnt mean he will be in the future...the boss i had was the 'nicest' boss i ever had...until he fired me and wouldnt even let me take his van home to unload my tools.....and until he wrote a letter to the union accusing me of stealing

things will change between you and him as soon as you tell him....and the changes wont be positive...all the changes will be negative to YOU!

take a longer lunch hour and handle YOUR business from 12:00 to 1:00......Tell your boss the truth and you may find yourself training your replacement

list the advantages and disadvantages

advantages.
1. you will feel honest

disadvantages
1. everything

[bacterozoid]

The problem is that I need more than just a lunch hour to take care of business. I need at least one afternoon off a week so I can handle various matters during business hours. I have no idea how to float a convincing story that could get me that - unless I'm honest (or just partially honest, as Bill suggested) about what's going on.

[huggytree]

figure another way........ask the boss to work 10 hour days and take Friday off....if you think about it there are probably a dozen ways to solve your problem....i wouldnt tell the boss until i was ready to be fired...

when i started out i worked m-thur 10 hour days for my boss and worked f,s,sun for myself...i came up with excuses why i could only work those days for my new customers....it worked for 8 months........i called people back during my lunch 1/2 hour and morning break.....i found a way to make it work...so will you

i doubt most bosses will say 'ok thats great....your working 2 jobs and going to be leaving the company soon....awesome......ill do everything i can to help you succeed and leave my company'.....is that how its going to go?

[KristineS]

I think there are really two separate issues here. One is should you tell. There are pros and cons to that. Really, if you're working on your business on your own time, it's your time and what you do outside of work shouldn't matter one way or the other to your boss. On the other hand, if you know you want to build the business and there is a possibility that your boss might find out from another source, it's probably smarter to get ahead of things and share at least part of what you're doing. In reality, only you know your boss and your relationship with him and only you can judge whether or not telling him is a good idea.

Where it gets sticky for you is the fact that you want time off from your work day to work on your side business. As I said earlier, if everything is basically confined to your hours when you're not working the day job, then a case could be made that it doesn't matter whether or not you tell your boss because your non-work time is yours. If you do want to adjust your work hours to accommodate your business, however, you're either going to have to lie or tell the truth and accept whatever happens. If you try to conceal the truth, you're going to be dealing with the added stress of worrying about being found out in addition to the stress of starting a new business. There may be ways to make that work, but if you want to adjust your work time, it seems to me the only way to make that happen is to be honest with your boss.

[huggytree]

your free time is your own, but some bosses would not like your free time to be used WORKING....your not going to be a very good employee if your working 2 jobs 14 hours a day.....nor would they like that your full time job is now less important to you....all your thoughts will be on your new business...

i wouldnt like my employees to be working long hours....when i work long hours i make more mistakes....

[bacterozoid]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts on the matter. I haven't decided what to do just yet, but if I do tell my boss I'll update to let everyone know how it went.

[SC93]

As crazy as it sounds......I agree with all the replies. lol But the thing you are doing is putting the cart before the horse. Just think of this as another side job... because in reality... IT IS! If it works out to be more... great... but do you realize how many dreams are shattered each year because things don't work out? Treat it as a side job... hopefully it gets busy.... hopefully soon you need to take off 2 days a week.... then 4 days a week.... but right now it's still just a side job so don't make a huge deal out of it.

[Reflo Ltd]

It seems to me that you are working as a freelancer with the potential to some day become and independent business..... however, the keyword is "potential". I would say to keep it as casual as that. If you one day become so popular and in demand that it warrants your starting a full-time business, then address that matter when the time comes. in the meantime, be the casual freelancer that you are.