I went full-time with my blog and freelance writing in October 2019. It’s already been over six months now and although for some people reading this, it still is quite fresh, I’ve been self-employed for years. And that’s even with a full-time job too. When I first moved down to London back in 2014, I had big dreams of pursuing a career in performing and so part of that meant that I would need to be self-employed and therefore be flexible to go to auditions whenever necessary. Going self-employed for anyone who’s never done it before can be terrifying but for me, it’s something that I love. The fact that I can earn an unlimited amount of money instead of the same monthly paycheck is incredible. However, it’s not all rainbows and ponies. Here are some things to consider before you go self-employed.
*This is a sponsored post.
Be Confident In Your Career Path
Firstly, it’s important to find the career path before you go self-employed and to know exactly what you want to achieve. It doesn’t need to be detailed in how you’ll go about it but the more prepared you can be the better. You might be starting a side business and be at that point where you’ve been making enough money consistently for the past few months where you think you might be ready to go self-employed. I feel like this is different for everyone because I didn’t get confident with going self-employed for my blog and freelance writing until about a year down the line of really earning money. It all depends on your financial situation at the time, commitments and just being ready. The best advice I could give you is to know what you want to achieve and be confident in yourself. It’s important to have that confidence because others are going to necessarily provide it for you.
Consider Insurance
Insurance is important for everyone and when you are earning money, it’s a good idea to consider different types of insurances like life insurance or income protection for example. There are plenty of services out there that provide it so it’s good to do some research in order to know what type of insurance you need. Income protection can help support you in times where you might be sick or unable to work for health reasons. Whether it be an illness or injury, having insurance can really give you that peace of mind that you’re covered. When you have a full-time job, you have the luxury of getting paid sick leave, so it’s good to ensure you’ve got the protection as a self-employed individual.
Have An Emergency Fund
I’ve always been vocal about having an emergency fund and thankfully, my mum has always instilled in me the need to save money. It’s something that has definitely stuck with me over the years and has helped me keep out of debt (aside from my student loan debt) and I’ve managed to save a lot of money over the years. An emergency fund is something you definitely want to have and becomes particularly important when you buy a property or start having children. It’s good to have some money in the bank that is used for emergencies only. It’s not savings you spend here and there, it’s only used for times when you really need it. Income protection pays out a percentage of your salary, so it’s good to have some of your salary through self-employment, rather than nothing at all.
Be Prepared For Tough Months
The idea of being self-employed can be exciting for some but in reality, not every month is going to be a good month. This can be especially so if you’re just starting out and trying to find your feet. Regardless of what you do, you need to have put in the effort to find the work and that work might not come in as regularly as you’d hope. Even when you’re established, you can have months where the work is trickling in here and there. In some cases, it might be that you just have enough to pay the bills for the month. It’s important that you’re preparing yourself for the tough months and that you’re ok with that being the norm. It’s something that has taken me a while to get used to and luckily, I’ve managed to work my blogger business off the ground so that I knew I’d be able to earn double the money I was on during my full-time job if I worked hard enough.
Do You Have The Drive?
And finally, do you have the drive to be self-employed? With a lot of work, it’s not something that doesn’t land in your lap and so you have to go out and pitch for it in some cases. That drive is something you need, otherwise, you might not be as successful as you’d hoped to be.
*Disclaimer – This is a sponsored post with LifeSearch. All words are my own.
