Personal Tips From And For The Self Employed

Most people who have followed me on this blog or elsewhere over the past few years know that I am self-employed. Self employment didn’t come to me by choice, at least initially, rather it began to unfold “naturally” beginning in November 2002 when I was laid off from my aviation job.

At that time I was working as a technical writer for a business aviation company in New Jersey, a company who had been ailing for well over a year due in part to the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Thirty of us were let go, an event that took place over a two week period. Oddly, my boss gave me two weeks notice before I was terminated which gave me plenty of time to wrap up loose ends and begin to plan my future.

Once work ended, I quickly created a business through LegalZoom and called it Matthew C Keegan, LLC. Not a very original name, but I wasn’t interested in coming up with something that people wouldn’t be able to connect to my name. Most of my then intended customer base knew me very well, therefore why be different? Besides, I’ve learned over time that most people are interested in who you are and what you do, not what the Internal Revenue Service and the State of North Carolina recognize to be your business name.

From the start, I imagined myself providing technical manuals to small businesses, particularly in aviation, but that really didn’t work out for me. I got some work, but then my mother and my mother-in-law became ill, both dying the following summer within weeks of each other. My main income during the first two years was through advertising as I managed to do quite well with Google AdSense.

However, managing my mother’s estate and dealing with the aftermath of losing both grandmothers took a lot out of our family. It really wasn’t until September 2004 when we made the move to North Carolina and I also transitioned from technical writing and website building to freelance writing did my business begin to take off.

Since then I’ve been providing a variety of writing services to clientèle, most of whom are not aviation related. Honestly, I found that my writing interests were much broader than aviation, so I began to write on automotive, travel, human interest, and other topics. Today, I include two print publications as regular customers, several blogs, an automotive parts company, and a handful of miscellaneous projects that I tackle from time to time.

Advertising revenue is now only a small portion of my income base as AdSense pretty much dried up for me in 2005. However, for 2009 I plan on expanding my advertising opportunities across the four blogs, three mini websites and one flagship site that I still manage.

So what are my personal tips for the self employed? That’s easy: work hard!

Seriously, hard work is only part of the equation when it comes to being your own boss. I’ve learned over the past six years that other qualities need to be built and nurtured in order to achieve your goals. These qualities include the following seven points:

Be Passionate! — If you don’t like what you’re doing, why do it at all? Likely, you’re interested in freelance work because it is the right path for you. You’ve seen people who are miserable in their jobs and have decided that doing something that has no appeal for you is just plain wrong. Therefore, whatever you find to do with your hands, do with all of your might!

Make A Plan – This one tripped me up because my plans were all wrong. Well, not really – they just needed to change as doors closed and other ones opened. If you are planning to work for yourself, give thoughtful consideration to what type of work you want to do. For example, if you want to blog professionally, who will you write for and how will you make money? Likely, you’ll need to write for several blogs and pull in some other gigs to keep your head above water. Be flexible – nothing in written in stone unless, of course, you have a written contract. Even then, contractual agreements eventually come to an end.

Get Established – Here in the US, there are a number of things a freelancer can and should do to establish a business presence. By no means am I a legal professional so make sure you learn from the state what you need to do in order to set up a business. What I did was to create legal documents (as mentioned previously with LegalZoom) and I contacted the IRS to establish an EIN – employee identification number. Also, I registered my business with the state (originally New Jersey, now North Carolina) and I acquired a local license to operate my business. In addition, I file an annual business report with the state of North Carolina and pay whatever business taxes are owed. One note: you’ll be taken seriously by clients if you go through all of the steps to set up and maintain a business.

Market Yourself – With any business, getting the word out to others that you are in business for yourself is important. This means keeping a list of contacts handy and letting these people know that you’re in business for yourself is a critical foundation. Approach these people via phone call or in person (if possible) and explain to them how your services can aid their business. Beyond a foundational supply of contacts, you’ll want to join the appropriate organizations to support what you do. For example, I belong to SEAMO which is an organization made up of automotive writers. In addition, being active online via social media is very important so join LinkedIn, Facebook, StumbleUpon, Digg and other sites that can help you spread the word. Oh, by the way, you do have a website, right?

Be Flexible — “Blessed be the flexible for they shall not break.” Okay, this isn’t a Biblical admonition, though it sure sounds like one! For those of us who are involved in any kind of Christian ministry work, we understand that being flexible is important to helping others. No “customer” is the same and each person will want you to tailor your work to fit their project. Find out what the customer needs (you may have to tell them as some don’t know) and come up with a plan to help out. Expect to make many changes as you fine tune your work and always be ready to adjust on the go!

Get Educated – No, I don’t mean returning to school to earn a degree although that could be a good idea for the person who needs to complete their education. Rather, taking the occasional course, seminar, or enrichment class that can benefit you and your business. I took a class two years ago from SCORE – which is an organization of retired executives that helped me make my business run smoother. Also, I educate myself by doing a lot of reading which includes subscribing to print publications such as The Deal, Money magazine, Kiplinger’s, and most recently The Wall Street Journal. I cover a lot of business subjects; these publications and certain online sites help keep me abreast of all of the trends.

Don’t Give Up! — Yes, working for yourself can be difficult especially if you’ve always worked for someone in the past and are used to a regular and steady paycheck. It isn’t easy – I should know as I’ve been doing this work as the sole breadwinner for almost the entire time. If I don’t make it, we struggle. That’s where my Christian faith really kicks in – I’m dependent on Almighty God to supply us with all of our needs. That supply often runs low but I have never seen it run completely out nor do I expect that it ever will.

As a matter of personal policy I don’t coach people who want to go into business for themselves. I simply don’t have the time nor do I have the inclination. Still, if you follow much of what I’ve shared herein and are willing to work hard, you’ll succeed. Even if you are just a so-so writer your writing will improve over time and the quality of projects you take on will be much more interesting and financially lucrative as you gain the required experience to confidently market yourself as a freelance writer.

>>For another perspective about freelance writing, Laura Spencer’s article, “Your Customers Are Closer Than You Think,” is a great read.<<