7 Lies About Self-Employment

You likely heard and believe at least one of the 7 lies about self-employment mentioned below.

The conspiracy theorist would say these lies are told to keep people controlled by corporations.

The historian would say that those with an entrepreneurial spirit founded America, and we lost that spirit as a nation.

Regardless of why these lies are told, the truth remains that they are indeed lies.

Some claim that being self-employed requires specific and “in-demand technical” or “professional skills.” If you have these skills, only then can you make a living working for yourself.

The truth is, you can succeed at self-employment with only one skill.

And this skill is not taught in ANY school unless you attend the School of Hard Knocks.

To be successful at self-employment, you only have to have the skill of being able to solve someone’s pain.

When you can identify someone’s pain more clearly than they can and offer a solution, you will succeed.

Another lie is that self-employed people have it tough because their work is so sporadic.

The erroneous thought is that if you’re self-employed, it’s feast or famine with no middle ground.

First of all, all business endeavors are unpredictable to some degree.

If you are not planning and pivoting in your business, you will not survive.

The horse and buggy industry did not adapt and vanished.

Large companies laid off millions of people in 2020 because of COVID.

Self-employment can become predictable depending on how you structure your business and the services you offer.

In transactional businesses, you might not be able to predict your income.

You can smooth out the income fluctuations if you create recurring revenue streams (membership sites, monthly consulting retainers, etc.).

If you believe it is safer to stay a salaried employee, you have not paid attention to the massive layoffs businesses have done during the last decade.

Having only one client, your company, is MUCH riskier than striking out on your own.

Having all my income tied to one client is riskier than spreading out my income to 10, 100, or 1,000 clients.

If I have a membership site with 1,000 each paying me $12 per month and I lose 10, I’m out $120 that month, but I’m still collecting $11,880 that month.

Self-employed people indeed have to pay for their health insurance.

It can be costly. But as a self-employed person, it is also tax-deductible.

Consider, however, the savings you can achieve if you work for yourself and do it from home.

You save on commuting costs that were not deductible. Miles driven for business when you are self-employed are tax-deductible.

You can cut back or eliminate your need for childcare—no need to pay for before and after-school care if you make your own hours.

As a self-employed individual, you decide how much or how little interaction you have with people.

Pre-COVID, there were enough networking groups and lunches that you could attend one every day of the workweek.

When you launch your business, you have a level of control that is amazing.

You control every aspect of what you do. This includes the products/services offered, the pricing, marketing, and YOUR SCHEDULE.

To claim that “Not everybody is cut out for self-employment” is a lie.

There are MILLIONS of ways to be self-employed.

People can and do, find the type of self-employment that fits their personality, desired lifestyle, and desired income.

The problem is we are taught to limit our imagination regarding work.

If you worry about getting another job after self-employment, you are setting yourself up to fail at self-employment.

Maybe you try self-employment and decide that it isn’t for you. That’s fine.

The belief that “employers won’t hire you again” is not entirely true once you try self-employment.

This belief is part true and part lie.

Some companies may take this stance, but would you want to work for a company that disqualifies you for taking a risk and doing something millions can only dream of doing?

Many more companies would love to have talented people who show initiative and gumption.