Series: From Employee to Entrepreneur

Why Employees feel Trapped

Hanif Lakdawala | For Business

In a country buzzing with startups and unicorns, it seems ironic that millions of employees feel stuck in their jobs—unfulfilled, uninspired, and unable to take the first step toward their entrepreneurial dreams. The truth is, most employees don’t lack talent or ideas—they’re simply trapped. Trapped in comfort. Trapped in fear. Trapped in a mindset that tells them a job is the only “safe” choice.

This article explores why so many professionals and those who do jobs never make the leap—and how these invisible chains are forged not by employers, but by the employees themselves.

Real life scenario one:

A successful Vice-president of an IT company is dreaming to start his own company for two years. Unfortunately, not a single action taken towards achieving his dream.

Reason: Unable to initiate the process on his own, as he is habituated delegating real work to team members who execute ideas into action

Real life scenario Two:

A Marketing manager with a FMCG multinational, comfortably handle business worth around 1000 crore but develop cold feet whenever decide to start his own venture

Reason: Major time spend on meetings and analysing data neglecting the action on the field and market.

The Comfort Zone: A Silent Career Killer

Comfort is seductive. A monthly salary, yearly appraisals, health insurance—these perks create a sense of security that’s hard to walk away from. But comfort can easily become complacency.

Most employees fall into routines: commute, tasks, emails, deadlines. Over time, this routine becomes a loop, where even thinking about alternatives feels risky and foreign. Business ideas stay locked in journals or in late-night conversations that end with: “Maybe someday.”

According to a 2022 YouGov India poll, 1 in 3 Indian corporate employees had a business idea they never acted on, and 70% of them blamed it on lack of time and mental bandwidth.

Mental Shackles: The Fear of the Unknown

Fear is a major reason employees remain stagnant. The most common fears include:

• Fear of Failure: “What if my business fails?”

• Fear of Financial Instability: “How will I pay EMIs without a salary?”

• Fear of Judgement: “What will people say if I quit a good job for a risky dream?”

• Fear of Inadequacy: “I’m not cut out for business. I don’t have an MBA or investor.”

These fears are real, but they are often exaggerated in the mind. The comfort of a steady job becomes a mental safety net—even when that job brings no joy or growth.

A LinkedIn India survey (2023) revealed that 71% of Indian professionals have considered entrepreneurship but didn’t pursue it due to fear of financial insecurity. Similarly, a HubSpot global study (2021) found that 62% of employees cited fear of failure as their number one barrier to starting a business.

Cultural Conditioning and Family Expectations

In India especially, jobs are seen as social proof of success. From government service to MNC jobs, employment is often viewed as a badge of honor. Starting a business, on the other hand, is perceived as unstable or something “others do.”

Parents, peers, and even spouses can reinforce this belief, not out of malice, but concern. This emotional pressure keeps many employees on the treadmill—moving, but going nowhere new.

A TiE Delhi-NCR report (2021) showed that more than 60% of aspiring Indian entrepreneurs feel held back by family and societal expectations. This cultural mindset often drowns entrepreneurial intent before it even gets a voice.

The Salary Addiction Loop

Many professionals adjust their lifestyle to match their income. As salaries rise, so do EMIs, car loans, private schooling, vacations. This creates a debt-driven dependency on the job. The very salary that once seemed liberating now becomes a chain.

The India Household Income Survey (2023) reported that average urban EMI obligations have increased by 42% in the last 5 years, leading to high financial dependency on stable jobs. In fact, 80% of salaried Indians have no alternate income stream, according to a BankBazaar savings behaviour report (2022).

The Myth of Timing and Readiness

A common phrase among working professionals is:
“Let me just work 2 more years, then I’ll start.”
But often, the perfect time never comes. There’s always a project to finish, a bonus to collect, a baby on the way, a loan to repay.

This illusion of “later” becomes a permanent postponement. Readiness is not a milestone—it’s a mindset.

A NASSCOM Startup Report (2023) confirmed that only 7% of Indian working professionals who had viable business ideas took action. The rest continued to wait for the “right time”—that never came.

The Way Forward: Awareness Before Action

Understanding why you feel trapped is the first step toward freedom. This article is not a call to resign tomorrow. Rather, it’s a wake-up call to evaluate if your current path aligns with your aspirations.

If not, it is time to start small:

• Validate your business idea on weekends

• Join entrepreneurship forums

• Save and create a financial buffer

• Surround yourself with people who’ve done it

In upcoming parts of this series, we will explore how to dismantle myths, rewire your mindset, and chart a low-risk path toward business ownership.

Key Takeaway:

• Jobs offer security but can stifle dreams.

• 71% of Indian employees have considered business but fear holds them back.

• Cultural pressure and rising EMIs increase job dependency.

• Waiting for the “right time” is the most dangerous myth.

• You don’t need to quit to start—you need to start to someday quit.