I’m officially a year into self-employment – while I didn’t do a huge celebration, I did take my husband out for an amazing taster menu dinner and raised a glass then. So, where am I a year on – what’s the same and what’s changed?
Name Changes
Early doors I started using the word consulting in my business name because I thought I should – it felt necessary to have at least some kind of descriptor for what I was doing. It’s never felt like a great fit though and so in the last year I changed the name I’m using simply to my own. I’ve spotted it’s a question lots of other freelancers have struggled with – just their name, their name and a descriptor or something else entirely? There’s no right answer.
But I’ve definitely grown in confidence to own this business under my name alone. I still struggle with the word consultant, and even though it’s what I call myself on LinkedIn and on my email signature etc, I’m still searching for a better descriptor that feels a bit better fit.
A Proud Generalist
My other reflection in terms of my business name and the content of my work is that I’m still a generalist, and a very proud one. I’m glad I didn’t limit myself to one specialism when I started out because I’ve been able to do a big variety of work so far, and it’s one of the aspects of self-employment that I’ve loved the most. It definitely has its challenges in terms of how you describe yourself, how you market yourself and how you develop LinkedIn content to name a few, but I’m also getting better at naming and owning that too. I’ve even recently found a generalist network that I’m going to explore and I love the fact that someone’s recognised the niche and nuances of generalism.
Increased Day Rate
Within a few months, I’d upped my day rate. Those initial calculations were invaluable, and I’d hugely recommend someone else starting out in self-employment does a similar exercise. It really helped me understand my costs, the context I was working in and helped ensure I genuinely valued my time properly. I’ve been running on this increased day rate for around 9 months and it was recently increased again for a new project. It may have taken a year, but I’m much more comfortable naming my day rate now, because I’m confident of what it needs to cover as well as the value I provide.
Phenomenal Network
I’m still bowled over by the generosity of the freelance world. One particular network I’m part of has shared a wealth of knowledge, event invites, insights, training and work opportunities. On top of that, it’s provided people to partner with in tenders, a Monday morning check-in that grounds you for the week ahead and monthly conversation-coffees, linking together social-good freelancer for introductions. I feel so lucky to be part of it.
A Slightly Jazzier Office
My husband may hate it (a life lesson in getting carried away with an idea and purchase without consultation and laying any the foundations for change…) but I’ve got an incredible lightshade in the office now. It’s a small thing, but along with the new plants, screen riser and footstall, it all goes towards having a more professional office. Particularly because the room used to be our daughter’s nursery. It’s also building more of a sense of permanence, that I’m starting to believe this change is going to stick.
Bang On Financials
This was a major coup. I’d created a cashflow when I started and committed to religiously separating out 25% of all earnings into a tax and NI account. My accountant aka husband completed my self-assessment this week and amazingly I was less than £100 off what I needed. And that’s my tax bill for the year just gone, as well has half of next year’s tax bill on account (thanks HMRC!). It felt amazing to have this ready, and from here on in I’ll just be paying a half yearly tax bill, without any further speculative payments on top. It did mean I had to pay for pension contributions from my main account though – and that made me realise that if I want to make those 15% contributions, I need to be putting away 40% of my earnings each time. A goal for year 2 (or possibly later!)
Rubbish Holidays
Okay, so this one was a pretty major fail. I’ve not really achieved any significant holiday time – and I completely own up to that one. I’ve found it so, so hard to carve out time and stick to it. Partly it’s been the content of the work I’ve taken on that’s meant it’s hard to step away from. Partly it’s because I’ve had a series of short-ish extensions one contract so a break always felt around the corner. But mostly it’s because I need to learn to let go and recognise that the break is worth it.
Confidence
I’ve really experienced a surge in confidence this year. I really love what I do, I add real value and I’m so excited to learn more, develop more and continue to grow. I love the autonomy of owning my own CPD and there’s now a huge list of training, workshops, groups and courses I’d love to be part of. I’ve found a whole new range of incredibly insightful and innovative development opportunities and just not enough funds/time to do them all. Apparently if I won the lottery, I’d spend it on CPD.
Faith
The other key growth area is faith. While the “cliff edge” of worklessness never feels too far away, I’m learning to live with it. There is a natural ebb and flow to freelance work, and while it’s validated my approach of a rainy day fund and scrupulously putting tax and NI money to one side, it’s also helped bolster my faith that there is enough work out there – you just never know what’s around the corner.
Variety
It has been a rollercoaster of a first year but I am so pleased with where I’ve got to. Leaving employment really is a huge leap of faith and I’m starting year 2 with so much more information, contacts, confidence and faith. I’ve done facilitation, policy, communications, resource-building and mentoring across 7 organisations and managed to complete an 8-week international course in leading hybrid groups. I am hugely looking forward to a summer break but equally excited about what’s next.
Photo by Anirban Sengupta on Unsplash