A good hedge against the risks of starting your own business is to begin working on building your company while you're still employed, with a full-time job that pays a regular salary.

Here's why:

If you're in a position to start your business while you're still employed, you'll have the best of both worlds. A stable, dependable source of income will give you much more confidence in testing the waters with a new business that has a higher likelihood of failure in the first year.

Here are some simple Do's and Don'ts to guide you as you walk the fine line between keeping up to the expectations at your current full-time job and pursuing your interests in your own business, or new “side hustle”.

Do's

• Consider running your business as a part-time operation alongside your current job. This is a great model because you'll continue to have regular income and benefits while you find a way to drive consistent, reliable income with your side business. The last thing you need while trying to grow your own business is the added stress of unpaid bills accumulating, or using your family savings that should be kept for a rainy day.

  
  

• Understand and follow your employment contract. This is particularly important if it refers to inventions and intellectual property (IP) that you develop as part of your job. Almost always, anything developed on company time and using company property belongs to the company. If you do not have an employment contract, you're still not in the clear. Check the company's Employee Manual for references to ownership of inventions and IP. No manual? Ask your Human Resources manager or someone functioning in that role to explain the policy.

  
  

• Save your side income. Set aside cash reserves from the income that your new business makes to sustain you when and if you decide to leave your current job. On top of that, be sure to put in place stringent spending and budgetary guidelines for your side business to make sure you're not spending beyond what is necessary. Saving or investing all of the profits from your side business will help you build a safety net for your next stage when you may not have your current regular income to support you.

  
  

• Be as open with your employer as possible. In fact, if your business is not a competitor, see if you can turn them into a collaboration partner, customer or client. You may even be able to get your employer to invest in your new business or allow you to hold equity in a joint venture. If you think you might go the route of having an employer as a customer, investor or partner, be sure to consult an attorney to get trusted advice on how to proceed with caution.

  
  

• Thoughtfully prioritise your time. If you're going to keep your day job and work on growing your part-time business at the same time, that doesn't leave much time for social activities or exercise. Decide what's important, consult with the other stakeholders and family, then create a target list of all the responsibilities and activities you'll be reducing or eliminating to make time for your business.

  
  

Don'ts

• Don't use the equipment, company computers/laptops or email systems of your existing employer to send any emails related to your side business. Even if you log into your webmail account to send an email, you may still have problems: you are using their property to further the goals of your own business, which could present a legal challenge later, as well as burn a bridge when leaving the company. Keep in mind, they may have the right to read whatever keystrokes you've entered, even if your emails were not entered into the company's email system.

  
  

• Don't feel pressured to leave your day job as your business starts to gain traction. New businesses go through life cycles, and some early wins do not necessarily mean you have a sustainable business. You should validate your business model with real, paying customers and then go through a period of time with consistent growth in your customer base and sales. Your side income needs to get above that which your necessary expenses will require, before considering quitting your day job to focus on your new business on a full-time basis.

  
  

• Don't choose a business that is not conducive to your circumstances. A business that doesn't lend itself to part-time involvement won't suit you very well if you can only do it part-time at the start. For example, opening a retail food store can be an all-consuming endeavour. If you are not reachable, hands-on at the beginning stages or don't have a partner who is there every day, you are setting yourself up for potential failure. 

  
  

• Don't talk about your part-time business to other colleagues in or around your full-time work space. This could be construed as promoting your business on company time. Rub one co-worker the wrong way with the fact that you're running a side business and that could bring up potential issues with your employer if they tell management before you're able to have that conversation yourself. The silence rule extends to discussions on company time with your employer's clients and suppliers as well.

  
  

Don't be afraid to leap into full-time entrepreneurship when the time is right. Running a business part-time can be partly successful, but unless you are going to be a passive investor, the business will grow only up to a certain point without your full-time commitment. Once you've identified a clear demand for your solution and you have a sustainable level of income from your growing customer base, it's safe to start considering the leap to self-employment.