The Secret Blueprint for Salaried Employees to Build a Business Without Risk

Today, I am writing about one of the most common and chronic challenges faced by many 9-to-5 corporate soldiers — the struggle of starting a parallel business while managing a full-time job.

The dynamics have changed drastically post-COVID. With the rise of work-from-home and flexible work hours, professionals have gained some control over their schedules. However, this flexibility has a darker side — the clock has quietly shifted from 9 to 5 to 9 to 9, or even longer when required.

Despite this, the new work culture has given professionals the opportunity to manage a side gig and generate an additional source of income. Yet, several challenges still persist — obstacles that most salaried individuals face the moment they start thinking about entrepreneurship.

Let’s discuss these challenges stage by stage. I would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below.

Stage One: The Active vs Passive Income Dilemma

The first and foremost challenge for most professionals looking for a side gig is understanding the difference between active and passive income.

Even those who know the theory often fail to apply it in practice. I won’t go into textbook definitions (there’s already plenty of material online), but to put it simply — a passive source of income should not require the same level of time and effort as your active source of income.

For a salaried individual, the active source is their job. Unless you devote your time and effort, you won’t earn your salary. On the other hand, a passive source of income is something that earns money for you with minimal effort — your money works instead of you.

For example, earning interest from a Fixed Deposit (FD) is a passive income. Suppose someone invests ₹10 lakhs in an FD — within a few clicks, the FD is booked, and they start earning around ₹60,000 a year, effortlessly. But yes — ₹60,000 or even less is hardly lucrative at today’s FD rates! Check Latest FD Interest Rates - October 2025

And this is where the premium for risk and time begins.

Let’s say you decide to invest in shares instead. Either you hire a professional portfolio manager who charges fees (and you might earn around 12% annually), or you invest time and effort in your own analysis.

Whatever route you take, once your money is invested wisely, it continues to work for you — that’s the essence of passive income.

There are other traditional options like bonds, REITs, T-bills, corporate FDs, IPOs, etc., which I won’t detail here since there’s ample information online.

But this Stage One applies mostly to professionals who already have some savings and a stable income. Unfortunately, the returns from these traditional passive sources are so low that they hardly make a difference — unless you already have a large corpus (around ₹1 crore or more).

And here lies the biggest dilemma — for most first-generation professionals, the real struggle is to reach that first crore.

Stage Two: The Leap of Faith

After going through Stage One, professionals soon realize that traditional passive income sources don’t create real wealth. So they look for something riskier but with higher returns.

At this point, they often forget the active vs passive principle. They enter the build and operate mode — and that’s where the biggest mistake happens.

Now they aim to build something that needs an investment of ₹50,000 but expect to earn ₹5,00,000 a year from it. With such unrealistic targets, demotivation sets in quickly after initial failures.

This new breed of entrepreneurs — the salaried investors — are used to the stability of monthly salary credits and are psychologically conditioned for consistency and certainty. When faced with the uncertainty and inconsistency of early-stage business revenues, they tend to withdraw quickly.

Since their salaries come as a result of their time and effort, not monetary investment, they try to replicate that mindset in business. Instead of hiring people for basic operations, they end up doing everything themselves — replying to customer messages, handling operations, and eventually burning out.

This often leads to frustration and, ultimately, quitting.

Let’s take an analogy to understand this.

Suppose I want to build a resort, but I don’t have enough money right now. I decide to start small — say, a two-star hotel. But instead of hiring labourers, I buy sand, cement, and stone chips myself and begin learning civil engineering to build it on my own.

Does that make sense? Of course not.

Then how can the same approach work when building a business? That’s the biggest mistake early-stage entrepreneurs make.

So, What’s the Solution?

First, ask yourself — Are you truly ready to invest money?

In our analogy, if a two-star hotel costs ₹10 lakhs but you only want to risk ₹2 lakhs, then start smaller. But whatever you decide, ensure you have the resources to execute immediately, without depending solely on your time and effort.

Next, comes the most important step — testing your assumptions.

Every business idea is based on certain assumptions. If those assumptions are wrong, the entire business plan collapses — just like a building with a weak foundation.

Your idea might seem perfect in theory — a product or service you believe people will love. But that’s just an assumption until validated.

Instead of building the full product first, use part of your initial investment to test the idea.

• If the feedback is positive, go ahead and build or deliver the product/service.
• If not, it’s time to rethink and realign your assumptions.

This is where most first-generation entrepreneurs or salaried professionals aspiring for a side gig go wrong.

Remember — business success depends more on common sense and practical thinking than on fancy technical skills.

As we’ve seen, success in business or side ventures isn’t reserved for the highly technical or the overly analytical — it’s about aligning your skills, mindset, and resources in the right direction. Once you start viewing opportunities through a lens of practicality rather than perfection, every idea begins to make more sense and every step feels more achievable. This mindset shift is the real starting point for any financial or entrepreneurial journey.

One book that truly changed my perspective is “The Lean Startup” by Eric Ries — an excellent read for anyone wanting to understand how startups should actually be approached.

As a finance professional, I often interact with aspiring investors exploring new avenues for income, and I believe this article can help clear some of the clouds so the sun of clarity can shine through.

Final Thoughts

If you’re facing a similar dilemma and need someone to talk to, feel free to email me at bansalmanish30003@gmail.com.

Follow my blog to stay updated — my next article will discuss the “Starter’s Dilemma” — how to choose the right product or service, and how to identify your own incoherent skills and strengths before starting out.

Disclaimer

I do not provide investment advice for stocks, shares, or bonds. My purpose is purely educational — to share experiences, help individuals identify mistakes, take corrective action, and realign their strategies to achieve long-term success.

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About the Author:
Manish is a Chartered Accountant by profession and a passionate writer who loves exploring human behavior, finance, and the intersection of professional life with personal growth. Through his blogs, he shares practical insights drawn from real-world experience to inspire working professionals toward financial and personal independence.

© 2025 Manish. All rights reserved.