When we talk about entrepreneurship, we often think of a young, energetic team. However, lately, there seems to be an increasing trend of entrepreneurs in their 30s with experience in large corporations. I am one of them.

Having founded my own company three years ago, I’d like to share some insights about entrepreneurship after working as an engineer in a large corporation.

Can Build Almost Anything

If you’ve worked hard in a big corporation, you likely have considerable technical skills.

A team of two or three people can cover everything including design, front-end, back-end, and infrastructure. (Someone who does individual development might even be able to handle all of these alone.)

In our company, I was responsible for design and web front-end, while my colleague Matsuda handled app front-end (iPhone, Android), back-end, and infrastructure. So, the two of us could build almost anything.

By the time you're in your 30s in a big corporation, you're probably earning a decent salary, so the burn rate is not negligible. Keeping the team size as small as possible is preferable.

Both of us had families, so reducing our salaries wasn’t an option.

Being able to build anything is a significant strength, but it doesn’t necessarily guarantee success, which is also important to understand.

Being able to build anything quickly increases the number of opportunities to bat, which I think is the biggest advantage.

If the first product is successful, that’s great, but that's rarely the case. (Our company pivoted more than 10 times.)

You need to fail repeatedly, gain experience, and with some luck, eventually find success.

So, being able to build quickly, I believe, increases the chances of ultimate success.

If the CEO is not an engineer, the company has to start by finding someone who can build the product, which is a significant advantage over such scenarios.

Understands Corporate Structure

It may seem obvious, but in talking with fellow entrepreneurs, it's not always the case. Those who start businesses during college, for example, might not have any real-world corporate experience (which seems quite common based on my observations).

Simple manners, email etiquette, and understanding the atmosphere of meetings are invaluable.

Can Take on Contract Work

With decent technical skills, you can take on contract work. Working for a large corporation often means having a network that can bring in work, often at a higher rate.

In the early stages of a startup, the main financial need is payroll. (Of course, depending on the field, there might be a need for equipment investment as well.)

Many companies develop their products using funds raised for operational expenses.

However, fundraising in a startup should be used to accelerate the business and ideally should be done when the business is on track.

After three years in a startup, I believe that having the “strength to survive” is crucial.

The pressure of dwindling funds is something you can't understand until you experience it. It's mentally exhausting. (Our company nearly ran out of cash twice.)

Having cash itself is a happiness. That's for sure.

To survive, taking on contract work is necessary, along with continuously trying to create new products.

Of course, every attempt is made with the belief that “this product will be the one,” but even when it fails, you learn from it and try again. This hellish loop is repeated until you finally near success.

Pivoting is like a strong new game – the more you do it, the stronger you become, and the more refined your product becomes.

Even if things don’t work out, by that time, you’ll likely have become a battle-hardened, highly competent freelancer.

Small But Elite Team

Starting a business in your 30s often leads to a mature, adult team, essentially a high-income group of experts.

Many have families, which naturally leads to a more white-collar corporate culture.

From my observations, many companies seem to prefer advancing with a small but elite team, rather than expanding their workforce.

With a smaller team, the revenue per employee is naturally higher, allowing for higher salaries.

However, many people considering leaving a large corporation to start a business may have the following concerns, so I’ll offer my opinion.

Reluctant to Leave What They've Built

After working for 6 or 7 years in a big corporation, you’re in a middle management position, with established technical skills, evaluation, and network. Some may even be earning over 10 million yen annually.

The idea of a stable life if you continue as is certainly isn't wrong.

Should you leave all that behind to start a business? Many people are hesitant. (The same can be said for moving from a big corporation to a startup.)

However, what you’ve built doesn’t disappear when you start a business. Your technical skills are further honed, you move from being evaluated to being the evaluator, and instead of just earning a million yen, you enter the world of billions.

Not just technical skills, but marketing, sales, customer service – you experience it all, significantly increasing your market value.

Have Responsibilities

By your 30s, many are married with children and a mortgage. (I got married at 24, had my first child and bought a house at 27.)

Saying “I want to start a business” in such a situation will obviously be met with opposition from your spouse.

In such cases, it's important to minimize the risks of entrepreneurship.

In my case, I convinced my wife with these two rules (somewhat forcibly):

Keep the same salary

If the company struggles and money runs out, I’ll look for a job immediately

The point is, as long as money is deposited into the account as usual, there should be no problem.

In reality, the first rule, “maintaining the same salary,” was achievable. (But if the salary was around 10 million yen, it might be difficult. Maybe 7 million is the limit.)

For the second rule, “looking for a job if money runs out,” it's easy to say but hard to decide when faced with the situation.

Trying to survive through contract work and fundraising means it could take months before deciding to actually shut down the company, which implies a few months of unpaid (or reduced pay) work.

So, it's a risk, and having a cash reserve from contract work is a good strategy from the start.

Reflecting on Everything

I think starting a business after being an engineer in a large corporation isn't bad.

Utilizing the skills and network you've developed can significantly reduce risks.

However, even the best engineers don’t always succeed in business. Business doesn’t have clear answers, which might be challenging for engineers.

Like engineering, business success comes with experience. It's important to persistently try.

There are so many young, talented engineers these days. Talented engineers, especially as they approach their 30s, often struggle with career plans.

In such cases, considering entrepreneurship as an option might be worthwhile.