Can You Bootstrap a Unicorn with Your Paycheck?

Let’s say you have a great idea for a startup and you have the ambition of building a billion dollar company — a Unicorn. Should you immediately quit your job and jump in with both feet?

Or should you bootstrap this idea with a paycheck to validation? May be to profitability? Is it even possible to bootstrap a Unicorn startup with a paycheck? Has anyone ever bootstrapped a Unicorn with a paycheck?

I suggest you start by bootstrapping your idea to validation without quitting your job.

Then, you can quit and go full time with it.

That would give you options: you can either bootstrap all the way, or bootstrap first, raise money later. Investors tend to chase validated businesses.

Here is an example of a Unicorn bootstrapped with a paycheck in this 1 minute 36 second video. Investors have chased this entrepreneur for years and years and years.

If you prefer to read instead of watching a video, read these two interviews with Girish Navani:

Built To Enjoy: eClinicalWorks CEO Girish Navani

Thought Leaders in Healthcare IT: Girish Navani, CEO of eClinicalWorks

We also had Girish as a guest at our roundtable. Here is the video of that session:

The next option is for you to read this book and get to know a number of entrepreneurs who have done fantastic jobs bootstrapping with their paychecks: Entrepreneur Journeys: Bootstrapping With A Paycheck

You see, folks like Girish and others have helped us work this tried and true methodology into our program. Come talk to me to get started.

Photo credit: Rob Boudon/Flickr.com.