I've done it. Lived on just savings for 9 months before getting some seed funding, which lasted 4 months. Then, we made a pivot so that was another 6 months of

I've done it. Lived on just savings for 9 months before getting some seed funding, which lasted 4 months. Then, we made a pivot so that was another 6 months of savings and counting, but we are close to closing an angel round. My cofounder did the same. I prepared enough savings to last about 2 years (living very frugally) before I took the leap. I'm single. Do I regret it? Not really. Not even if this startup fails and I deplete most of my savings. However, two things I would maybe do differently: 1) I would have kept a job while I networked and learned more about the startup world. Seeing how you are on HN and read a lot about other startups, your case is probably different. 2) I may also have started with less savings. I think I worked at a slower pace in the first 9 months than I am working now, because 1) I was burned out from corporate and 2) I knew how long my savings could last me for.