Self-Employment

Posted by KC Morgan

When you’re self employed, you have to learn how to treat yourself like a business. You pay a special tax, you have to claim working expenses and you have to put time, effort and even personal income into marketing and promotion.

In many ways, you are a business of one. When you act like one, not just professionally but financially, you can go further with your work at home goals…and lifestyle.

You Are Your Own Commodity

You’ve got the Web site. You maintain a pretty regular schedule. You have steady work at home jobs and gigs to keep you going; you even have a special space to work. What you may not have is a special, business-based bank account. You may not think you need one.

Whether you pay your taxes annually, quarterly or monthly, you will owe the government part of your income. In almost all cases, self employed professionals are also independent contractors who are paid not through a regular payroll, but through checks and payments with no deductions or taxes conveniently calculated.

You have to claim your income and then pay what you owe - and this can add up to a pretty penny. Keeping track of all the receipts and deductions you’ll need to claim your expenses can be a complicated affair.

Treat Yourself Like a Business

You probably already use a personal checking account to balance your home and work budget, but why not separate the two? Open a business account and put a portion of your income here. Take out expenses as necessary to have an easy record for tax purposes, simplifying claims that will save you income taxes.

If you use a pen name or pseudonym to conduct business, you can legally register your business account in this name, creating a DBA (doing business as) persona.

Posted by KC Morgan

You always start the workday with the best intentions. You know what needs to be done, and you know how to do it. But suddenly hours have passed, and you’re no closer to your goal.

Are your deadlines just too impossible? Do you just have too many projects? Or, are you guilty of one of the pitfalls of self employment? Are you working at home, or playing at home?

Daily Distractions

It isn’t easy to work at home. There’s no one to tell you what to do or to keep you on track. There’s no reason you can’t enjoy television, do a little online shopping or simply stare blankly at the walls…is there?

When you find yourself caught up in daily distractions, instead of being caught up in your work, you’ll soon find yourself struggling to make ends meet or even maintain a good working reputation. You’ll find yourself no longer self employed…and that’s not what you want.

Stay on the Self Employment Track

Stay on track, stay focused and stay self employed by learning how to avoid all those little elements that entice you to have fun instead of having to do work. It’s much easier to sit on the sofa and flip channels, but no one’s going to pay you to do that.

Write out a daily list of tasks, small goals that seem large when you complete each one. Give yourself small steps rather than big leaps. For instance, if you have a large project due, don’t wait until the last day to get started. Spend the first day doing research, the second designing a layout, etc. Complete each little step until you reach the big goal - being finished with work, and being really ready to enjoy play. Use it as a reward for yourself, rather than a distraction.

Posted by KC Morgan

Are you an independent contractor? The question deserves more than careful consideration - legally, the IRS wants to know. If you’re still a stranger to 1099 forms, the self employment tax and claming expenses, you need to learn what working at home means for your budget.

The status of independent contractor is not hard to define, and it usually applies to many self employed, work at home professionals. Do you earn revenue directly from clients and/or consumers? If you ever receive income that has no taxes deducted, you can consider yourself an independent contractor.

Now, what does that mean?

Working at Home…on Your Budget?

Whether you conduct your business through email or go to client’s homes or offices to perform your service, self employment is expensive by nature. You’re independent and on your own - and even though the money you receive isn’t taxed, that doesn’t mean you don’t have to eventually pay your due.

When summer breezes are blowing, April tax time is a dim memory and barely a speck on the horizon of your future. But weeks have a way of moving quickly, and soon you’ll be liable for all those taxes you didn’t pay throughout the year.

Being an Independent Contractor

If you are an independent contractor, you’ll need to offer up a portion of your income for taxes. Remember to keep records throughout the year of what you earn and what you spend, including portions of any bills or money spent on the maintenance of your office environment and equipment. Always save a portion of your earnings - because a portion of your earnings will always be due to the government. In most states, you will also need to register yourself as an independent contractor (i.e., fill out a form) and pay your self employment tax (a percentage of your earnings).

Posted by KC Morgan

Are you working fewer hours but still making decent money? Do you find the pressures of scheduling and deadlines loosening up a bit? You have several very solid gigs and you know about how much you’re going to make each month. Have you hit a self employment stride…or a rut?

Do you find yourself making just enough money to get by? The bills are paid, the fridge is stocked and no one seems to be complaining. But if you’re making just enough, you’re probably doing just enough to get by when it comes to the job. Self employment is still a job…remember?



Do More for Your Self (Employment)

The hours are starting to become a bit more normal and you’ve managed to work out a good routine. You now have time to do all those little things in the day that used to be such a hassle before. Is self employment getting easier, or are you getting softer? There is always another goal to reach and there are usually even better opportunities out there. Don’t slide too deeply into your comfort zone - you can always take self employment further.

If you find yourself getting a little too complacent and realize that you may be making enough money but you aren’t making any extra, it’s time to amp things up a bit. Even when work at home seems steady and comfortable it’s a good idea to do daily or weekly job searches, to scout for new opportunities and employment. Even the most stable and steady positions can suddenly disappear, and you don’t want to be caught in your complacency. Self employment is, by nature, unstable - and anything can happen.

Posted by KC Morgan

When you work at home, it’s important to keep your self employment balance. Find the line between work at home and being at home, and try to maintain it.

When You’re at Home

When you’re at home, it’s easy to see the myriad of household chores you need to address. How can you work when you have so many things to do? You want to look for jobs, but you’ve absolutely got to take care of the laundry. You want to meet your deadline, but you have to make sure dinner is ready for the family. You want to work…but there’s so much work to do even before you begin your self employed day on the job.

When you’re at home, it’s easy to get distracted and get taken off-track. It’s easy to get tied up in the details of living, and forget all the important details of working for yourself.

Keeping Your Self Employed Balance

Find the line between work at home and being at home, and then maintain it. Give yourself a certain amount of time every day to take care of household chores and then no more. You may feel embarrassed or over-tired if the house is dirty, but you’ll feel hungry and completely at a loss if you aren’t earning income. The at-home workday is about much more than working about the house - it’s about working for yourself.

Remember to maintain a high level of professionalism, and don’t put off work chores for home chores if you can help it. You do have a job and you do have work to do - if needed, remind your family of these facts so that they’ll pitch in with household chores.

You are your boss - and when the boss says it’s time to work, then it’s time to work.

Posted by KC Morgan

Some sites let you access a bank of jobs for free, while others ask that you complete an extra step. Maybe you have to register your e-mail address, maybe you have to bid on available projects. But maybe you’re asked to fork over a fee just to get a glimpse at a world of self employment possibility.

Should you sign up to search for work at home jobs?

Paying to Find Work at Home

Many sites boast thousands of jobs and opportunities, with plenty of employer contact information to help you get the ball rolling. There’s just one catch: you have to pay a membership fee and belong to the club before you can get a good look at the jobs that are offered. It’s tempting to take the bait, especially when work seems lean and the only gigs you can get are short-lived at best. Is it time to take that next step in your self employment, join a community and get a chance to peruse exclusive offers?

Should You Sign Up for Search?

It’s true that some job boards may have listings which are unavailable to others, and the only way you can access these opportunities is through the site in question. However, there is a great deal of competition on these sites and you’ll find the members are extremely serious about getting the work. If you can afford the expense and truly can find opportunities no other way, you may consider paying to find work at home.

In many cases, however, you can make do with free job boards and find self employment just as easily (and more cheaply) through this medium.

Posted by KC Morgan

You may hear that self employment is very freeing, an independent lifestyle where you pick the jobs and call the shots. What they didn’t tell you is that work at home can come with its own unique set of troubles as well.



The Reality of Work at Home

The reality of work at home is that it can be very lonely and the work isn’t always steady. Your budget will change, your finances will fluctuate and sometimes your nerves will be frayed. You can handle all of these troubles. How about a few more?

What They Didn’t Tell You

Explore a few little-known facts associated with the work at home lifestyle, and find out if you’re still up to the task of self employment:

About Payment

Many employers may offer written or verbal promises of compensation. If you don’t understand the terms, do not agree to them. That revenue-sharing deal may sound great at first…until you realize just how hard it is to get more than one thousand clicks. You may also be required to ask for payment through PayPal’s invoicing system. Be advised that PayPal will take a percentage of every invoice amount received.

About Samples

You may have to go through a lengthy hiring process with some employers, who will ask for samples of your work. They may give you an entire assignment so they can see your style. You’ll have to take time out of your work day in order to provide this. In many cases, you’ll be compensated for none of it.

About Schedules

You decide when you want to work, sure, but they decide when they want to receive their projects. You’ll still have to work around an employer’s deadline in order to be compensated, and that means scheduling your time depending on their whims.

Posted by KC Morgan

Getting paid less that what you’re worth? Work at home gigs often feel tenuous. You know you’re doing a good job…but you also know there are many other people vying for your position. You want to make more money, but you don’t want to lose a good thing. Find out how to ask for a raise and get a good chance of getting it, too.

How to Ask for a Raise

You really like the job, but you can’t keep spending time on it unless you get compensation. In the world of self employment, any misstep could leave you out in the cold. Don’t alienate your employer by making demands. Instead, learn the right way to ask for a raise.

Be Indispensable

In a way, you have to prove that you’re “worth it.” Don’t start out by asking for more money. Start out by asking for more work. Take your existing tasks above and beyond what’s been asked for - throwing in a little extra for every assignment. Prove that you’re willing to do more by showing it to the ones writing the checks.

Be Independent

Always turn everything in ahead of schedule. Don’t cut deadlines too close if you’re angling for a raise - you won’t get it.

Be Indifferent

Once you’ve shown your high quality and proven that you can take on extra tasks, it’s time to think about that raise. Don’t threaten or become desperate. Instead, stay indifferent and professional. You have many other jobs to consider and many pressing tasks on your time, and you feel that you’re getting paid less than you’re worth. Say that you’re willing to accept new responsibilities to go with your new pay, but otherwise you just might have to terminate employment. If you’re really doing a great job, most of the time you’ll win that raise.

Posted by KC Morgan

It’s true that self employment takes strong self-discipline, shameless self-marketing and serious self-confidence to have any chance of success. There are a lot of reasons to be afraid of being self employed. But there are at least five reasons you should rejoice in work at home. Let’s look at some of the perks of being self employed.

Perks of Self Employment

You know plenty of reasons for disliking self employed - unstable pay, working holidays, an abysmal lack of benefits, even extra taxes. Buck up with these five reasons to rejoice:

Expensive gas? No problem!You don’t drive to work, ergo you aren’t spending hundreds of dollars a week on the gas it takes to get you there. As your friends and family grumble over the commute, you’re worrying only about Internet traffic.

Bad hair? Who cares?

There’s no such thing as a bad hair day when there’s no one around to impress with your appearance. For you, business attire is clothing optional.

Good manners need not apply.

Struggling to break off that phone conversation instigated by your mother-in-law’s call? Looking for a way to shoo out an unwelcome houseguest? You can always pull the “got some work to take care of” card and send them on their way.

Everything is a potential write-off.

Do you use your high-speed Internet to facilitate work at home? Did you buy a laptop to make the job easier? The stamps you use to mail the bill, the gas you burned up driving to the electronics store and all work-related purchases themselves can be applied as business expenses on your tax forms.

Snooze bar? Who needs it?

You can almost toss out the alarm clock when you create your own schedule. Sleeping in takes on a whole new hue when you can absolutely get out of bed whenever you feel like it.

Posted by KC Morgan

If you aren’t earning revenue, is any work at home job really worth your time? When finances are lean and your nerves are short, you may be ready to chuck it all and seek out gigs that reward you in cold, hard cash. But remember that some work at home positions offer other perks. Non-monetary compensation doesn’t always sound attractive…until you weigh all the variables.

Non-Monetary Compensation

“We can’t pay you right now, but we will give you a full-color page on our site and the work you do for us guarantees your name will be in the search engines.” If you stopped caring at “we can’t pay you,” you might be missing out. It’s difficult to weigh jobs on merit when you imagine bills looming above your head, but sometimes you might have to take a step back and look at a larger picture.

Work at Home Perks

If you like the job, it’s important to consider this reality. Even in work at home, no job is likely to be ideal. There will be times when you feel bored, bunt-out or dissatisfied. Actually enjoying the work can go a long way toward brightening your day (and keeping you sane). Having a true affection for what you do it its own reward.

Exposure is another huge factor in self employment. Maybe you aren’t making money, but you’re getting your name out there in a very big way - there’s no telling when this could lead to a bona fide paying opportunity.

Creative control is a huge reward, and one that doesn’t come with every gig. If you’re given the freedom to work your own way, pick your own topics and be as creative as you like, you have a great outlet for all those creative energies. Why would you want to give that up?