You Can't Leave Things to Chance When You Freelance

Working as a freelancer or contractor brings with it a freedom not felt in other jobs. It allows for those that practice it the chance to have more control over their working hours than those in ‘traditional’ jobs. It allows them to feel as if they are working for themselves, even when they are doing work for a larger corporation. But it’s not all freedom and rainbows as a freelancer. Because of the lack of authority hanging over you it can be very hard to retain motivation. Without a company there to sort our legal necessities out it can be hard to remain legal. If you freelance you certainly can’t leave things to chance — you have to take control of your situation and sort it yourself.

The typical desk of a freelancer

As a freelancer you have to stick to the working hours you set yourself. You can’t leave it to chance that you will get it all done a few hours before the deadline. What if something happens at that point that renders you unable to do the work? To be a successful freelancer you have to treat the hours that you set yourself like normal working hours. You need to be strict with yourself. And to get you through these hours you’ve set without having an authoritative figure looming over you need to remain self-motivated. You need to be able to treat your final project of the day with as much enthusiasm and endeavour as you did your first, even if 12 hours have sat between them. A way to do so is to break the day up as you see fit and try different things during each section. For instance, you could stand up at your desk whilst you complete one project. You could complete the next one outside. You could then do another in your bedroom. You could then head to your nearest Starbucks and do one there. The more you break up your day the easier it will be to get through it and see the light at the end of tunnel. You should also recognise your limitations too and work around them. If you know you burn out at a certain time, no matter how much coffee you drink, then this should be the time you cut your working day. You can’t leave this to chance. You can’t leave yourself too much to do after that threshold if you know you won’t be able to produce the best work. It’s your job and your job alone to get the work not only done, but done well.

You also can’t leave legal issues to chance either. Without a business or company helping you out in regards to tax and insurance issues it can be easy to forget about them. But you most certainly cannot forget about them. Well, that is if you don’t want to end up with a hefty fine or maybe even worse. You need to keep on the right side of the tracks when it comes to the law and your finances. You can’t leave the situation to chance. You can’t leave it to sort itself out, because it won’t. If this proves too much of a hefty task for you then you should seek professional help, such as that which is offered by a contractor accounting service. They will help you when it comes to any all-important VAT, PAYE, tax, IR35 or insurance issues that you face. They will de-jargon the legal jargon for you. They will provide in-depth support on what you should be doing to keep yourself out of hot water with the law. You can’t leave this aspect of freelancing to chance. You can’t bury your head in the sand. You have to face it head on.

So, if you are a freelancer make sure you leave nothing to chance. In fact, just treat it as if it were a traditional nine to five job. Everything will be much easier that way.