Self-Employment Toolkit (Our Top 5 Must-Haves)

Our self-employment toolkit featuring our top 5 must-haves!

Being self-employed is incredibly rewarding. It’s also 👇

• Challenging

• Exhausting

• A wild ride if there ever was one

When you’re self-employed, you’re handling nearly everything on your own if not everything. You’re handling client or partner communication, you produce all of the work product, you handle new business outreach - all of it.

And, I applaud you. I know what it’s like to be self-employed (Well Kept is a tiny, yet mighty team of two and it keeps us on our toes!) and it is not easy. Yet, there are so many reasons why it’s the right fit for so many of us. It offers 👇

• Flexibility

• Autonomy

• Endless opportunity for growth

To hopefully make things a little easier and enjoyable for you, no matter where you are on your self-employment journey here’s our self-employment toolkit - the five things (or people) you should have in your court.

1. Community

Having a community is positively invaluable. Your community members are your friends, your supporters, your clients, your customers…anyone who supports you and believes in your vision. Having a community means you not only have people to lean on, you also have people to rely on. Here’s how to start building your own community.

2. R&R

I initially thought I’d leave this for the end, but you know what? Self-care is a priority. And if it’s not, I highly recommend working to make it a priority. If you’re feeling burnt out and exhausted, guess what. You’re not going to do your best work. It’s going to be very difficult to show up as your full self ready to go if you’re not taking care of yourself. So, one of our biggest tips is to invest (yes, invest….your time) in some rest and relaxation.

3. Methods for automating

Automation is THE word for 2021. Okay, it should honestly be the word for business in general. Automating means more time for you, and less time working on things that can be taken care of with a little forethought and creative set-up. Pro tip: Check out Zapier to help you automate your business. Not sure what to automate? Here are a few ideas:

• Invoices

• Onboarding emails

• Client communication

• Email list subscription

4. Creativity

This isn’t just for our friends in “creative” niches. It’s for every self-employed person. As a business owner (whether you operate as an LLC or a sole proprietor), you have to get creative. The need may pop up when you’re working on projects for your clients, creating new products, or creating multiple revenue streams. Whatever it may be for, the ability to think creatively is a must.

5. Negotiation skills

Or rather, in this case, shall I say lack-there-of? Small businesses and freelancers, alike, took a hit in 2020. We saw thousands of small businesses shutter, freelancers had to completely shift their services, and many more were impacted in countless ways.

Yet, we still see people looking to hire self-employed folx who “don’t cost an arm and a leg” or have “reasonable prices” - and this year we say no more!

If you’re unsure of what to say when a client or customer asks for a discount, use these responses to let them know why you are not offering a discount at this time.

Do you struggle with any of these? Let us know in the comments or via email so we can help!

- Gabriella