The Pros And Cons Of Self- Employment

Being self employed, especially if you are thinking about leaving a job where you are an employee to work for yourself, sounds like a dream come true, because you have the freedom to set up your own business, employ the kind of staff you want and make money from doing something you love. However, being self-employed isn’t all rosy in reality, because you have to deal with so many challenges involved in being self-employed.

THE PROS OF BEING SELF-EMPLOYED INCLUDE:

1. Freedom to choose when and where you want to work

One of the top advantages of being self-employed is the freedom that comes with choosing when and where to work, instead of your regular 9-5 job.That means if you don’t feel like working or you need time off to attend the kids’ school concert or get the car serviced, you can do so, because self-employment offers plenty of flexibility.

In addition, most small businesses can be operated with just a mobile phone, computer and internet connection, this means that you can run your business from anywhere you like and even if your business requires an office, or shop, at least you can choose its location.

2. Great control over your income

Being self-employed means that you are responsible for all of the financial records associated with it, and this includes a vast array of allowable business expenses. This means you are allowed to keep accurate records of your income and expenses, where expenses are then subtracted from your income to calculate your profit, on which tax is paid. Having control over your income provides an incentive to work harder, because there can be more of a correlation between your effort and your income. You could even make a lot more money by becoming self-employed.

3. Practice what you love

Another important advantage of being self employed is that instead of being given rigorous tasks by your boss that make you feel undervalued, you can do what you feel you do best, and are most passionate about. In addition, you have the freedom to carry out more fulfilling tasks that you believe best utilize your skills.

1. Isolation

Some days could be lonely for self-employed people working entirely on their own, as you tend to forgo teamwork and not being able to share victories or frustrations with colleagues, and until you are able to hire employees, being self-employed can be a lonesome business, especially working from home. This is because, working from home can feel isolating most times, because it’s just you and your business, and requires self-discipline to be carried out effectively.

2. Wasted time equals wasted money

When it comes to self-employment, time really is money, because any time off from your own business will leave you unpaid, unless you have an element of passive income generation.

Generally, this means that you never switch off from work even when away on holiday. The same applies to sick pay, if you are ill, any time off will be unpaid if you are self-employed.

3. Success is not guaranteed

Truth be told, being self-employed is not always going to be smooth sailing, as it involves lots of risks and challenges. Undoubtedly, not everyone who dives into self-employment will succeed overtime, because many uncertainties lie in being self employed.

These uncertainties are mostly experienced during the first few years, which are also rarely profitable, because so much time and capital is put into long hours of marketing, content creation and even lead following. Generally, in order to survive, many business owners create or modify their business strategy, often to something completely different, to escape some of these uncertainties, which is almost impossible for self-employed individuals.

Working from home is often a self-employment option for individuals seeking greater flexibility than that offered by their normal 9-5 jobs.