Being self-employed can be an incredibly rewarding experience. It can give you the freedom to manage your own schedule and work on projects that you are passionate about. You can also often enjoy a higher salary than an employed counterpart, as you don’t have to share your earnings with an employer. Additionally, you can take advantage of tax deductions that are only available to the self-employed. Finally, the pride and satisfaction of running a successful business and being your own boss is invaluable.
It’s a scary proposition for some people
I’ve met someone this week that opened my eyes a little to the reasons why self-employment scares people. People who are unfamiliar with the world of working for yourself understandably believe being self-employed and starting a company are the same thing. This is of course a myth – they are not necessarily the same, although there are many parallels, sure.
Starting a company can be expensive – you have to register the company, create branding, do market research and lots of other things. You still have to do some of these things to be a sole trader, but they are not as necessary or as urgent. You also have to have a financial and managerial structure to the company and it can become complicated.
Being a sole trader is much simpler – register as self-employed (for free) then…do as you wish! All you need (basically) is to keep records of your finances and fill out a yearly tax return. If you’re not going to earn more than £1000 in the year, you don’t even need to do that!
The scary proposition for those who have happily just taken home a pay cheque or pay slip at the end of every month is being in charge of your own finances, expenses and accounting. But, there are many tools for this. For example:
Three Online Tools to Aid Bookkeeping
- Xero: https://www.xero.com – Xero is an online accounting software that helps small businesses streamline their finances. It provides features such as invoicing, bank reconciliation, expense tracking, and payroll. Xero is designed to be easy to use and has an intuitive user interface. It also integrates with many third-party software such as Shopify, Square, and PayPal, making it a great choice for small businesses managing their finances.
- QuickBooks Self-Employed: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/self-employed/ – QuickBooks Self-Employed helps sole traders manage their finances with features like mileage tracking, quick invoicing, automatic categorization of expenses, and more.
- FreshBooks: https://www.freshbooks.com/ – FreshBooks is a cloud-based accounting software that simplifies bookkeeping and tax time for sole traders. It comes with features like time tracking, invoicing, and reporting.
How does Franchising make self-employment easier?
Franchising takes a lot of the pain out of being a start-up business, and being self-employed. The “hard” work of concept design, branding, processes and even marketing are often done or at least part-done for you to complete. Often with franchising the business is there for the taking, frequently described as a “business in a box” because you get all the planning done and all that you would need to do is implement the plan and carry out the business.
For example, if you were going to start your own language teaching business, you’d need to have designed leaflets, a logo, designed your curriculum, created your resources and then printed it all. You would need to buy extra resources or get things made or printed. With LCF, these things are already done – you have all the branding you need – logos, banners, social media templates. You would also have a multitude of courses for your language across various levels and age groups, all fully resourced.
Self-employment doesn’t have to be lonely
Finally, what you don’t get when you are your own boss without a franchise, is the support! Not only do you get help to start up your business, you are also mentored through the early period and you have regular training that is tailored to our industry, from experienced teachers and other industry professionals with expert knowledge. You also receive around the clock access to live chat support and access to our franchisee Facebook group and regular contact from head office to keep you in the loop about things you need to know.
If this sounds like something you’d be brave enough to step in to, why not get in touch with us. Michael is our sales manager and is also an experienced teacher and franchisee who can answer all of your questions. We can have an informal chat, or you can request a discovery call, or just request our information pack. If you are a proud linguist, and of determined nature, then we would love to hear from you about growing a business in your area!