5 Things to Know Before Turning Freelance

This is a contributed post and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Meet The Harris Family.

For those who work for other people, the number that would happily stay in their present job is small. Everyone wants to work for themselves, and the numbers show that more of us are taking the plunge and becoming our own masters. However, it’s important to remember that becoming a freelance worker isn’t all fun and games.  It’s not about getting up whenever you please, working in your pajamas, or taking a break from work to hit up happy hour. Below, we take a look at what you’ll need to know before making the switch.

Removing the Safety Net

People tend to get hung up on the bad aspects of their job. They can hate their boss, dread the commute, wish they had more time at home, and so on. When they’re in that negative thought cycle, they forget that the reason they put up with all of this is because, their job provides a stable income! When you go freelance, you’ll be giving up that safety net. That’s not to say you shouldn’t do it; just be aware of what you’ll be giving up.

Finances Are In Your Hands

Whatever your job is, whether it’s writing, drawing, designing websites, and so on, your natural talents will only form a part of your working day. When you become self-employed, you’re effectively becoming a business owner; and as such, you’ll need to know how to manage finances, set budgets, calculate your income and outgoing expenses, and so on. If you haven’t even thought about math since you were in school, it might be time to pick up a textbook and refresh your memory, because it’s going to become an important aspect of your life.

And So Are Your Taxes

When working a regular job, the financial details such as taxes are handled by payroll. All you see is the amount of cash you get to take home after your tax obligations have been met. When you’re self-employed, you are payroll. You’ll need to learn about things like form 1099, social security, and Medicare taxes. If you don’t understand these things, then you run the risk of creating serious troubles for yourself further on down the line.

Effort to Socialize

You might have found your colleagues to be annoying at work.  At least they gave you an opportunity to see and speak with people every day. When you’re self-employed, you’ll turn your chair around and find no-one there. There’s no-one to have a chat with at the water cooler. Now if you want to socialize, – and it is recommended – then you’ll have to make an extra effort to get out of the house.

It’s Not Easy

Finally, remember that if being self-employed was easy, then everyone would be doing it! You’ll face challenges, setbacks, and times when you want to run back to the office. But stick with it; a little bit of patience and perseverance will take you far!