Before you read more of my sharing on entrepreneurship, or start a business with AI, let me give you one warning.
Don’t quit your job just because AI and starting a business look exciting.
Entrepreneurship is often sold with slogans like these:
“Be your own boss.”
“Follow your passion.”
“Do what you love.”
Now AI has joined the party. On TikTok and social media, everything looks easy and automated. AI classes are popping up everywhere, promising that anyone can start a business quickly and won’t even need to hire staff anymore.
The Reality of Starting a Business with AI
The reality is quite different.
Those classes cost money. AI tools cost money. Your living expenses cost money. Before you see any profit, you have to pay the entry ticket, and AI does not make that ticket free.
The statistics are not kind to new businesses. A 2020 paper in UiTM’s repository states that 60% of new SMEs in Malaysia fail within five years. And staying open is not the same as earning the income you dreamed of.
I’m not trying to scare anyone off. I just want you to know the odds are not on your side, and what you are putting on the table when you start.
What You Put on the Table
The first thing at stake is your savings. Most new businesses take longer to make money than their owners expect, and the bills don’t wait. Rent, stock, software subscriptions and marketing all come before the first sale. Many founders end up using money that was meant for their children’s education or their own retirement.
Then there’s your income. When you leave your job, your monthly salary stops, and so do your EPF contributions, your company medical coverage and your annual bonus. In the early years, many business owners pay their staff and suppliers first and themselves last. Some months, they don’t get paid at all.
Borrowing adds another layer of risk. If you borrow under a personal guarantee, the debt can become your personal responsibility even if the business fails.
Your time and health are on the line too. Being your own boss sounds relaxing until you discover your new boss never lets you go home. 😅 You become the salesperson, accountant, customer service and cleaner. With AI, you’re also the person trying to figure out at 2am why the chatbot told a customer something strange.
And your family feels it as well. Uncertain income and long hours put pressure on everyone at home, not only on you.
I say all this from experience. I closed my first two businesses, bit the bullet, and I’m now on my third. I kid you not, the pain and pressure you have to absorb before you can move forward are very real. Third time lucky, I hope. 😅
Keep Your Job and Build on the Side
If you have a stable income that covers your needs, count it as a blessing. If you still want to start something, my strong advice is to keep that income and build your business on the side. Use that time to find out whether customers will pay, whether you make a profit after costs, and whether they come back. In my view, this is the smarter way to be an entrepreneur. It also gives you time to find the right AI tools. There are so many AI solutions out there that finding one that truly fits your business takes a while. Some days it feels like a new one launches before I finish my teh tarik.
But Do Learn AI, and It Can Be Free
Having said that, you should learn AI whenever you can, even if you have a stable job. From my own experience, AI really does make you more productive. It lets you do more than you could in the past, gives you guidance and solutions when you need them, and these days it can even do some of the work for you. As the saying goes, AI will not replace you, but a person who knows AI might, if you never pick up this skill for the future.
The good news is that learning AI doesn’t have to be expensive. The free versions of Gemini and ChatGPT are enough to get started, and you can learn a lot simply by using them on your daily work. Some people learn better with structured guidance, and that’s fine too, but you don’t need to spend big on day one. Here in Malaysia, the government’s Rakyat Digital portal is also offering three months of free Coursera access through its Global Learning Pass, with thousands of courses to choose from, though places are limited. You can register at www.rakyatdigital.gov.my.
Out of curiosity, I asked AI itself whether I should pay for AI classes. This is what it told me:
“For most beginners, free tools and free courses are enough to learn the basics, as long as you practise on real work. Paying makes more sense when you need hands on help with a specific business problem. Before you pay, check who the trainer is, and be careful with any class that promises quick or easy income.”
Even AI is telling you to save your money. 😄 If cost has been holding you back, there are free ways to get started.
If, after building the business on the side and testing whether customers will pay, you still want to leave your job and say, “Never mind, I want to go crazy and start my own business. It’s my life,” then I sincerely wish you all the best. You are hopelessly in love. 😄
Take the risk with your eyes open.
And whatever happens, be at peace with your decision.