8 Benefits of Being Self-Employed

I began my full-time self-employed journey on this date back in 2012.

I left a comfortable and familiar routine. I’d get up early each morning and head off to my regular job that handed me a paycheck every Friday.

I didn’t start this journey because I feared to become self-employed.

In the years since I went full-time as a self-employed web designer, author, and creator, I can assure you that being self-employed has its challenges. I understand that not everyone has what it takes to stay self-employed.

If there is even the smallest hint in your heart or mind that you want to become self-employed, here is a list of 8 of the most significant benefits I have enjoyed since I stepped out of my comfort zone and becoming self-employed. I think you are brave enough to step out and enjoy these benefits as well.

Many people let their jobs control or drive their live and not the other way around. The company you work for allows you only so many hours of paid time off which you need to schedule with your boss. If you have a good boss, they will work with you and get you the time off you want when you want it. If your boss isn’t so good, getting time off can be a hassle.

As someone that is full-time self-employed, you have the freedom to make decisions that shape your life. You pick the hours you will work. You can choose the location from where you work. You decide what type of retirement plan you have.

OK, in the first few months of my self-employment journey I struggled with this. I needed work and took work from whomever would pay me. I learned quickly that not all clients are the same.

I implemented a “pain premium” for some clients. My quote for the web design work I proposed was 50% higher than what I would have charged a “nice” client. Some would balk at the price and decide not to work with me. I found that some would gladly pay it (because I was still less than my competitors, more on that below).

As employees, we work with people we like and others we don’t. As an employee, we didn’t get a say on who the boss hired. That can make working with some co-workers tough.

The regular paycheck employees receive includes pay of hours worked, not the value provided. Yes, there maybe a end-of-year bonus (aka Christmas bonus), but very few employers share the profits of a company with employees.

As one who is full-time self-employed, how we position ourselves in the market dictates what we earn and the profit we make.

If we compete on price as Walmart does, we are in a race to the bottom.

If we position ourselves like Ferrari (and we do great work) we can, and should, charge more.

Self-employment is not all roses and unicorns. There will be things you do not like about being self-employed.

Overall, you will be able to do what you love.

Being self-employed means that you decide what work you will do.

If you like teaching but do not want to be in a classroom, you can work in various capacities.

My wife, a former high school math teacher, is a full-time math tutor. She picks the levels of math that she wants to teach. She focuses on the higher-level math courses since those excite her.

If you love custom and classic cars, you can become a broker for people looking to buy or sell their cars. A client of mine made the switch to this in the beginning of 2019 and absolutely loves this. Cars are a passion of his.

I am unemployable. I can never go back to a j-o-b.

I have tasted the fruit of self-employment and punching a clock is even sourer to my soul compared to when I did it day after day.

Most jobs are the same. You know what each day of the week will bring.

How can that excite or inspire you? Many of us could sleepwalk through a normal day in the office.

When you set your schedule, you can do client work one day for 15 hours and then enjoy a day or two during the middle of the week doing something else.

To stay saelf-employed you need to create.

There is a pain that your client has that needs to be fixed or mitigated. There are thousands of people and businesses that can offer a product or service to them.

Why will people pick you to solve their problems? Simple. Your creative expression.

How do you do what you do? What makes you stand apart from the crowd? It is you and your creativity that will play a huge role.

While the tactical and practical parts of what you do can be replicated, the combination of your creativity and the practical will always be unique.

The whole process, from the moment a prospect finds you and through the completion of the project or purchase, will show your creativity. Make sure you own the process.

When you are self-employed and work directly with your client, you will be able to help them one on one.

There is no middle person. YOU are the face of the whole operation, even if you use subcontractors.

Who doesn’t like to help others?

When you are self-employed and have found your niche, you will be able to breathe life into someone’s business.

If you never took the step into self-employment you would miss out on what you are truly capable of doing.

If you try and fail, you can always get another corporate or government job.

But if you stay in that corporate or government job, you will never know what you could have done.

The life of a full-time self-employed person is never the same, even if they stay in the same line of work for years.

It is easier for a self-employed person to pivot to another venture than it is for someone in a job.

I can move from a full-time web designer to a coach and online instructor and not have to ask anyone, and I can enjoy the rewards of helping people and for providing value to them in exchange for their money.

Have The Self-Employment Itch?

If you have even the slightest inkling that you might want to become self-employed, I recommend you fill out the form below and get my free ebook.