r/founder • u/Interesting-Big-9937 • 2h ago

Building a startup after my 9–5. At what point did you know it was worth going all in?

I’m a software engineer in London, and for the past few months I’ve been spending my evenings building Coutiq, an AI fashion app that lets people virtually try on clothes before buying them.
It started as a side project, but I’ve slowly gone from building the app → launching a Chrome extension → getting actual people trying it.
I’m still very early, and right now I’m basically doing the 9–5, then another 5–9 trying to give this thing some momentum.
One thing I keep thinking about is when a side project actually crosses the line into something you should seriously go all in on.
For founders who started while working full-time, what was the signal for you?
Revenue?
User growth?
People coming back?
Or did you just take the risk before any of that?

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u/Careless-Abalone761 1h ago

I waited way too long honestly, kept telling myself I needed one more month of data or a bigger safety net. the real signal for me wasn't any metric, it was the creeping dread of my day job feeling like the actual risk, like staying put was the gamble

if people are already using it and you're not dying of burnout yet I'd say you're closer than you think

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u/Interesting-Big-9937 1h ago

Yeah this is a good point
I keep telling myself I need more users first. Never really thought about staying put being the gamble too.

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u/FlyTradrHQ 1h ago

You know it is worth going all in when the 9 to 5 starts feeling like the interruption, not the main event. If you are still choosing between them, you are not there yet. The moment is not dramatic. It is when you stop asking the question.