Top 3 Benefits of Self-Employment

While being self-employed is not for everyone - I think it is a perfect fit for me. I've known that I wanted to provide psychological services in a private practice setting since I was a Senior in High School. Instead of telling you how old I am, just know that almost 2 decades have past since I had that dream. Although the journey to self-employment has been gradual, I am here and I love it. Why do I love being self-employed? Here's the upside...

Autonomy: I enjoy being my own boss. There is some financial risk with being self-employed, yet with increased financial commitment comes increased voting power in making decisions. I like making all the decisions, including how much I want to pay myself, when I want to work, how much time I want to take off. It took me many years to become this decisive; as knowing what I want, don't want, what works, doesn't work takes time to learn and define.

Creativity: There is always something to learn. While it's nice to have quiet time, I do love learning. It fuels my creativity to design the vision and plan for my business. I don't perform as well when others define my work for me. My creativity multiplies when I answer the questions myself. For instance, I may decide to learn a new way or marketing, and I can carve out time to learn everything I want to know and still provide an income for my family.

Flexibility : Again, I can work when I want, including flexing my schedule when unexpected absences due to work/weather arise. If I want to lower childcare expenses, be around when my kids aren't in school, I can. And, once your business is thriving, it opens up more financial flexibility. I get to decide what I need to do to give myself a raise. I even have the flexibility to decide which clients I accept and which I don't think are a good fit for my approach.

If you are considering becoming self-employed know there is risk with success. Building a business takes time. Know what's realistic. Interview or shadow people who have made it happen in your area of interest. Start small and dream big.

"The poor man is not he who is without a cent, but who is without a dream." (Harry Kemp)