Advantages and Disadvantages Of Being Self Employed: Self employment could definitely be a profiting way to make a living, regardless of the fact that it could be tasking and a lot demanding as one get to handle or let every important decision about the business go through them, it could as well be profiting. When one is self employed, he or she is said to be their own boss as he does not answer to anyone with regards to his job.
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Meaning of Employment
Employment means the state of having a job or the state in which a person is employed and in most cases, the job in question is a paid job. In its general sense is the relationship which exists between two individual, which most times, it’s on a term of contract where the work being done is paid for, the person who is an employer, pays the employee. However the mode of payment may come in different methods which could be in the form of monthly salary, annual salary, hourly or weekly wage.
Meaning of Self Employment
To be self employed, one has to work solely as a sole proprietor or contractor, the person need not necessarily work alone as he would have others working under him, rather he would be the sole owner of the business. Instead of working in a company or establishment and being paid salaries, being self employed, offers one the opportunity of paying his own salary and also bearing any risk emanating from the business.
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Advantages (Merits) of Self Employment
Being self employed opens doors to many advantages which other form of business may deny. These advantages are:
1. Being Self employed puts you in Control: It’s no doubt that humans love being in control, therefore being self employed offers us the opportunity to be in control. Being self employed provides you with absolute opportunity to be in control in every aspect of the business, it allows you to structure the work environment you wish to have. Instead of following rules or having some rules being forced down on you against your wish, you get to make your own rules.
2. Creates an opportunity to be more passionate about what you do: The magic of self employment is that it allows you to engage in work which interests you, you get to do what you love doing and not what another wants you to do. Instead of presenting your idea to an employer who has no interest in your them and have he or she turn it down, you get to pitch the idea to yourself and execute it the way you please.
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3. Work schedule: Isn’t it fun that you get to create your own work schedule; you get to decide where or when not to work, you get to work at your own pace? Being self employed helps grants you the opportunity to create your work schedule, however, while starting the business, the schedule would be a though one as one would get to work many hours and sometimes weekend all in the bid to build the business but once the business is strong enough, there would be stability which would allow you create a stable work schedule.
4. Team Meetings: In our respective work place, we get to endure sitting through unproductive hours of team meeting, we get to listen to our boss and co workers waste the time which if put into work would have increased productivity, but here we are, listening to long chatters as time goes by.
Being self employed would avoid this time killer as you get to plan about the business yourself, allocating time to yourself while doing it in other to be more efficient.
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5. Control over time management: Independent time as a person who is self employed means that you have more control over your how you spend your time which gives you more control over time management. You get to fix your schedule into allowing you to do other things like; going for the book club meetings, going to the gym and the rest of the extra work activity you wish to do.
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6. You choose your coworkers: Throughout your career as an employee, you will work with both those you like and those you despise the most. You are not given the option to pick your coworkers as an employee. It’s difficult if you don’t like your coworkers.
However, when you run your own business, that is not the case. You get to decide who to hire and fire, and you can assemble a team that complements your personality and objectives.
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7. You determine your work environment: The benefit of being self-employed is that you can work wherever you want. You could either choose to work from home or locate a professional office space.
Another option is to set up your company so that you can work remotely. For those who want to travel frequently without it affecting their jobs, this option is particularly appealing.
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8. You get the potential financial rewards: Yes, as an employee, you will be compensated for working extra hours. But you’ll rarely receive a cut of the money made from that work.
In contrast, when you work for yourself, you get to see the financial benefits of your labor. Yes, there is always risk involved in starting a business, but if you do it right, the benefits far outweigh the risks.
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9. No Dress code: One benefit of working as a freelancer is that you don’t have to dress in a suit and tie. The same is true for women who work. If you don’t like wearing formal attire, you’d be content to work from home in your jammies or from a different location while wearing colourful clothes that express who you are.
Only when you are attending a meeting with your clients would you need to be dressed as a corporate employee.
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Disadvantages (Demerits) of Self Employment
1. Paying more taxes: If you a self employed, you would realize that all that glitters are not really gold. This is in the sense that being self employed comes at a price. When it comes to paying bills, especially taxes, you would have to bare it alone. You pay more taxes as an employer than an employee, and no one would come to your aid as all the risk is on the owner of the business.
2. No stable income: Yes, one would be able to save up money by just working for him but this does not guarantee a stable income. You would be bearing the entire risk of the business on your shoulder which would lead to spending more and sometimes earning less especially if it is a start up business.
Unless you have good financial stability before starting, the first few years of starting up a business would defiantly be fund consuming as lots and lots of expenses would be made. Fortunately, you may be able to find customers and clients within a short period of time and this would help stabilize your income to a reasonable extent.
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3. There would be difficulty picking work: Being able to choose your own work schedule has been discussed in the advantages, however, this may be difficult to do as you may find it hard to settle for work at a particular time and not having to do other things.
One may find it difficult to establish a healthy boundary between their work schedule and their personal life. However, work may consume all the time one has, living him with little or no time for his personal life. Also at start ups, you don’t get to have paid leaves as you do not have the time to go on leaves and need all the money you have got for your business.
4. Isolation: Working for yourself sure does make you the boss but this does not excludes the fact that it leaves you in isolation. This is because you often get to work alone excluding you from the company of your friends. It’s no doubt that you have to get in contact with customers whom you would interact with but you won’t be going around telling them about your personal issues.
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5. Losing a client: Rating a self employed worker is by the success of his work, he or she tries as much as possible to please his or her client but this does not exclude the fact that no matter how one tries, you would lose one or more client during your career. So many reasons could explain the reason for a loss of a client and sometimes, it’s simply no fault of your own.
Being self employed is a tedious task one would say. At the early stage of this self employment, it is work upon work, you strive to get your things together, paying bills, attending to new customers, sacrificing the company of your friends and a whole lot more, but I tell you, once you have done your work well at the beginning, you stand to enjoy the benefits of self employment.
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6. Difficulties in separating your personal life from your professional one: The daily duties you perform when you work for yourself are typically less predictable, which might lead to more stress than when you work for an employer. Your stress levels may also increase if you are required to do numerous tasks that are unrelated to your area of expertise and are solely responsible for their success or failure.
By being as structured as you can and having a distinct plan for your immediate and long-term goals, you can reduce stress. The strain of working for yourself can be difficult to handle psychologically, but having a strategy can offer you a sense of purpose.
7. Hard work and the time it takes to build a business: Operating a business on your own is quite labor-intensive. This is especially challenging during the formative years, which are also rarely fruitful. It may feel like an endless amount of work is put into the firm to get it to a point of financial feasibility.
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Business entrepreneurs frequently underestimate the amount of work necessary to establish cash flow, which leads to many failures in the first two years of operation. Without a solid cash flow, no company can continue to operate. Many people have had to shift their business approach to survive, frequently to something entirely different. And regrettably, many companies have eluded the government’s safety net and received no funding to ensure their survival.
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8. Variable Income: There is no guarantee that you will consistently make a certain amount each month, for example. You can experience incredibly profitable days or months, as well as those where you make nothing since you have nothing to do. You should prepare for and budget for the variable pay that comes with being a freelancer. You need to be ready for the month when there will be little to no payment.
Working for yourself may allow you to save money, but you cannot certain that your income will remain the same. The first years of self-employment are sometimes challenging unless you have solid contacts before you start. Searching for new clients can be time-consuming without experience or connections. Fortunately, with some perseverance, you will acquire customers and make some living. You are not, however, exempt from late payments, which can have an impact on your expenses. Building a financial buffer is one way to avoid difficulties. And be ready to face the uncertainties.
9. Having to do everything yourself: It’s crucial to focus on increasing revenue while keeping costs to a minimum while starting a firm. As a result, you frequently end up in charge of everything, including administration, sales, marketing, and so forth. A significant portion of this can be outsourced, but only if there is enough money or a desire to do so.
When you have always been in charge, letting go might be challenging! There may seem to be an endless list of duties to do, many of which may interfere with the primary goal of your business. If you were to make the wrong decision in your job, you would also have to handle everything yourself. You are responsible for covering all costs.
Edeh Samuel Chukwuemeka, ACMC, is a lawyer and a certified mediator/conciliator in Nigeria. He is also a developer with knowledge in various programming languages. Samuel is determined to leverage his skills in technology, SEO, and legal practice to revolutionize the legal profession worldwide by creating web and mobile applications that simplify legal research. Sam is also passionate about educating and providing valuable information to people.
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