SaaS: It’s Just a Different Kind of 9-to-5

Fernando Pessagno
2 min readOct 15, 2024

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I’m not here to be negative, but there’s something that doesn’t get talked about enough when it comes to running a SaaS.

I’ve been there — the early days are SO exciting, and the dopamine hits from launching your own thing are real.

It feels like pure freedom, like you’ve finally escaped the 9-to-5 grind. No boss, you’re calling the shots, and it feels amazing.

But after a while, that feeling fades.

You hit a point where the exciting part is over, and now it’s all about maintenance.

You think it’s all going to be fun and exciting, but it ends up being a lot of the same tasks over and over: customer support, marketing (which I’m still not a fan of), and the grind of keeping things running.

And honestly, you’ll probably make less money than you would in a regular 9-to-5 (at least for a long time).

Especially if you chase that dopamine hit again by getting distracted with shiny new ideas, launching new products, and jumping to the next thing — rather than focusing on growing the one you already have.

I’m not saying SaaS is a bad path — I love it because it’s given me the flexibility to pursue creative stuff on the side, and that’s a win for me. But if I’m being real, I could have still found time for those things while working a regular job.

So, if you’re thinking of quitting your boring 9-to-5 to jump into a big SaaS adventure, just keep in mind it prob won’t be the perfect scenario you dream up in your head.

Don’t fall for the romanticized version. SaaS has its dopamine highs, but it’s the daily boring grind where growth actually happens.

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Fernando Pessagno
Fernando Pessagno

Written by Fernando Pessagno

Founder at aiCarousels.com and ResumeMaker.Online. Follow my #buildinpublic journey on X: @Fer_MOMENTO

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