The White-Collar Exit

The Exit-Ready Checklist

Companion to "The People Who Will Have Opinions" and "Crossing Over & Going Deeper."

One page, cleared before you cross. Every line gets a date or a number, not a feeling.

The numbers

Runway, in months of expenses set aside	months
Monthly household expenses the runway covers	$
Conservative ramp income expected (first year, priced low)	$ / month
Checkpoint date: the "we decide again" review, on paper

The one-sentence answer

Rehearsed until boring to you. Write it here:

What I do now, one sentence
Rehearsed out loud, times, on dates	☐

The insurance decision

Option priced in monthly numbers (COBRA / marketplace / spouse plan / Medicaid)
Monthly cost, in the budget	$
Decision made before crossing, not during	☐

The conversation list

☐ Partner told, with the numbers and the checkpoint date (not vision)
☐ Parents told, or a deliberate hold recorded:
☐ Colleague reactions planned (expect strange; ask for a contribution)
☐ Fence-neighbor answer ready, one line, full stop
☐ Quiet route chosen where allowed: build first, tell when there is something to show

Runway math finished, in months, on paper, where you can point at it. One checkpoint date already chosen for the "we decide again" review. The one-sentence version of what you do, rehearsed until it's boring to you. The fear you're actually addressing, named in your head before you open your mouth. Permission to not announce anything yet, if you're taking the quiet route.

The three doors

☐ Leap: severance or savings in hand, all in, with the runway math and checkpoints (Layoff to Launch)
☐ Bridge: cash needed now, direction not chosen; gig income as cash flow, not destination (Gig Bridge)
☐ Dual track: desk kept, fifteen to twenty honest hours a week on the build (Start It on Weekends)

Door chosen: Date: