Self-Employment - The Pros & 'Cons'

Picture this: it's Monday morning. You wake up - without an alarm. You remember it's Monday - you smile happily. You get up - at a leisurely pace. You go to work - in your pyjamas. You begin work - and love every minute.

Sound unfamiliar? It needn't be, if you join the millions of people who already work for themselves, from home. Just a generation ago, most people grew up believing that they'd find a secure job, stay there for their working lives, and retire at 65, complete with pension. Those days are now gone, as corporate job security - which was never that secure anyway - diminishes. The upside is that opportunities for entrepreneurs to build their own businesses have increased, as a result of the internet and global economy. There has never been a better time to branch out on your own.

So, self-employment has a lot going for it, and for those who are committed to maximising their abundance, and becoming truly financially free, it's almost essential. Sure, there are a tiny number of employed positions where you can earn million-pound plus salaries, but for most people, unless you hit the jackpot or inherit a huge sum, your wealth - or at least a portion of it - is likely to come through your own creative activities. And it's difficult to maximise that creative potential when you're using it to make someone else rich.

As you can guess, I'm self-employed, and am biased its favour. I believe that becoming self-employed is one of the most empowering steps a person can take, whether it's full time or part time, on a sole trader basis or with your own limited company (or non-UK equivalent). But it may not be for everyone. This article looks at some of the pros and cons you might want to consider if it appeals to you, but you're undecided. It also looks at how a deliberate creator might approach some of the 'cons'. Of course there are different types of self-employemnt, and this article is focused on the sole trader working from home. In reality, many self-employed people may have partners or employees, or work from an outside office, so not all of these points will apply to everyone.

• Freedom to control your time

  No need to do 9-5/Monday-Friday if you don't want to! This flexibility is one of the major attractions of self-employment.

• No dress code

  No need to wear a suit or other uniform. In fact, no need to get dressed at all if you don't want to - who'll know you're in the buff when you can hide behind your computer/phone!

• No limit on your income or level of success

  The sky's the limit here. No need to beg for a miserly annual salary increase - you're in charge of the purse-strings. And there's no 'glass ceiling' to contend with either, making self-employment a perfect choice for those who experience discrimination in traditional workplaces. Self-employment puts you in control of your future.

• Work you love

  Whatever your passion(s) in life, there's a way to generate income from it. Work should be a source of personal satisfaction as well as of income, and self-employment makes this kind of work easier to find/create.

• Lack of office politics

  No more brown-nosing the boss or dealing with annoying co-workers!

• Creative scope

  A business is a fantastic outlet for self-expression - you get to create the product/service, the advertising, the marketing - everything!

• Learn new skills

  To run your business successfully, you'll need to wear many hats, including accountant, marketer, PR person, IT person and more. Even if you outsource things like book-keeping, you'll still need to have a grasp of the fundamentals, to know if your advisers are doing their job properly. It can be very satisfying to master what you need to know in these areas.

• No need to stay in one place

  Many types of self-employed work enable you to work anywhere you choose, be that your bed, the garden, or a local coffee shop. If you do most of your business online, you don't even have to stay in one country - how's that for freedom? Working for yourself brings independence in more ways than one.

• Confidence boost

  Overall, running your own business is a terrific confidence booster. Even if takes time to manifest the level of success you desire, just the knowledge that you're actually doing what so many only dream of can feel very good. Add that to all the new skills you'll inevitably master, and personal growth - and the sense of satisfaction and self-esteem that goes with it - is guaranteed.

There are other aspects of being your own boss that might seem like a downside, however. But even these can need not be obstacles, particularly for someone who is consciously creating their life. Here are a few of them:

• Lack of steady income

  This can be a problem for many, especially in the first year or two of establishing their business. But lack need not be an issue at any time. There are those who find success very quickly, or who attract a comfortable income from other sources in the early days, although it's more common to hear about those who only 'make it' after lots of struggle. Remember - you don't have to create that scenario in your own life.

• Social isolation

  Most sole traders working from home necessarily spend a lot of time alone, and while this might be a welcome respite from the world for many, others might miss the company of co-workers. Taking your laptop to a public place to work, meeting a friend for lunch, and maintaining a social life outside work hours can help with this.

• Responsibility for all areas of the business

  As a business owner, the buck stops with you. This responsiblity can feel daunting if you're used to feeling 'taken care of' in a job, but it usually gets easier, and outside help is generally available if necessary. For example, if you're feeling overwhelmed by the aspects of your business that you dislike (such as doing the books), you can often outsource these jobs to others. If you need advice, this is usually available, for example from business advice organisations, government agencies etc. You're rarely truly alone if you don't want to be. And on the flip side, with that responsibility comes power - you're always in control of what's going on with your business.

• Distractions & lack of motivation

  Working at home means you're subject to lots of potential distractions. With no boss looking over your shoulder, it's up to you to make sure you get the job done, and many find themselves falling prey to the lure daytime TV and other activities. But if you choose work that you truly love, motivation will be less of a problem - you don't have to force yourself to do what you're passionate about!

• The unhelpful attitudes of others

  Sometimes other people have difficuly accepting that someone who works from home is truly 'working', especially in the case of family members who don't understand what you're doing, and just see you sitting on the sofa with a laptop all day. These people often fail to see why you can't run errands or take time out for non-work activities as often as they'd like. You need to set clear boundaries in this situation, and this is made easier if you can help them understand what your work involves. If they still don't take you seriously, you'll need to be more ruthless - but remember that their attitude will change when the money rolls in! ; )

• Overheads & start up costs

  As a business owner, you'll need to purchase the 'stuff' - from stationaery to specialist equipment - that might have previously been provided for you by an employer. The costs of this can be significant, especially when you're starting out, and especially if you have problems obtaining funding from the usual sources (banks etc). But again - align yourself with the allowance of an easy flow into your life, and you needn't go down the struggle route.

• Dealing with tax & other admin work

  Unlike an employee, you'll be responsible for filing your own tax returns and keeping up with other administration work. The key here is to keep your records up to date as you go along, rather than being tempted to leave it all until the end of the tax year to deal with. You could also hire an accountant to help out if you prefer to focus on other aspects of the business.

• Lack of benefits, holiday pay etc, and lack of employment law protection

  You'll also miss out on the pension plans, sick pay, holiday pay and other benefits that you would gain as an employee. But IMO these aren't such a big loss. You have the potential to more than make for for their loss with the enormous income that can now flow to you in the absence of a set salary level! And if you're doing work you love, why plan for retirement? If you're taking responsibility for your health and knowing that you create your body from the inside out, why plan to get sick? If you accept that you're creating/attracting everything in your experience, why do you need external protection? Dealing with these 'downsides' of self-employment is much easier for someone who accepts that they create their own reality in every respect.

• Long hours & stress

  Many people believe that it's necessary (especially in the early days) to work very long hours to be successfully self-employed, and that this must necessarily be stressful. Two points to consider: it's not your action that gets the results you desire, but your vibrational alignment with success. Line up on an energy level, and you'll find that the need for action is minimised (for more on this, see The Key to Success - Attraction or Hard Work?). Secondly, if you love what you're doing, chances are you won't be watching the clock, and even long hours spent doing what you love aren't stressful, if you're enjoying the process as much as the end result. So remember - the choice to struggle is yours.

• Lack of work-life balance

  On a purely practical level, those working from home need some space to call their own. A room of your own is ideal, but if that's not currently feasible, at least carve out some territory for yourself, and insist that anyone you live with respect your boundaries.

  It's also easy for the psychological lines between work and other activities to become blurred when you're doing both in the same space. Some people find it helpful to have a set timetable, and begin and end the day with little routines to separate 'work' from non-work activities. Personally, I love what I do so much that I don't see it as 'work', so I don't feel the need to make a distinction. But if your work feels like work (in the negative sense) to you, it's especially important to avoid overdoing it.

• Potential failure and loss of money

  Many people like to point out that your business might fail and you'll lose eveything you've invested. In short, you might fail. But remember - law of attraction will bring you more of what you focus on, so failure is actually unlikely if you remain focused on what you want. And even if things go in just the opposite direction to your plans, there's no such thing as failure. Many successful entrepreneurs have had false starts, or even become bankrupt, before finding massive success. So even if the worst happens (and remember, it's unlikely if you're focused 100% on success), you only 'fail' when you give up on your dreams.

• Problems with obtaining mortgages, insurance etc

  Banks and other traditionally conservative institutions can be wary of lending money or providing insurance to those without a steady income or a solid employment history. But with self-employment on the increase, things are improving, so keep your focus on what you want, allow law of attaction to match you up with those institutions who are willing and able to meet your needs, and don't expect to encounter problems. Remember that you're the customer and they need your business, and don't allow yourself to be intimidated. Believe in yourself 100%, and you're much more likely to make a positive impression. Every aspect of your self-employment experience can run smoothly if you allow it too!

Only you know the answer to that. Listen to what your gut is telling you - does the thought of working for yourself exhilarate or terrify you? Maybe it's a mixture of both, but in your heart you'll know if it's the best step for you right now or not. And remember that there's no need to make a huge change overnight - you could start a side business outside of your regular job, and wait until you've established a reasonably steady income on a part-time basis before you decide to go full-time.

Chances are, once you've begun, more and more opportunities will open up, and your path forward will become clear. You don't need to know what you'll be doing in 10 or 50 years - you only need to know the next step, and that's always made obvious by the way you feel when you contemplate your various options.

For more on the entrepreneur mindset, and moving beyond any blocks and fears that crop up with regard to self-employment, I recommend reading 'Wealth Without A Job' by Phil Laut and Andy Fuehl.