Paul Storie Author and broadcaster Emma Gannon lets us in on the secrets of staying money savvy in the world of self-employment In a modern climate of hyperconnectivity and a closer corporate focus on emotional wellbeing, the world is rapidly adapting to the concept of flexible working. In fact, according to research carried out by NatWest (in partnership with cross-party think tank Demos), since 2008, the number of highly skilled female freelancers has grown by 67%, as increasingly more of us are trading in our traditional nine-to-fives’ to join the ‘liquid workforce’ – a group including anyone that chooses to dip their toe into the exotic sea of self-employment . Although making the move to freelance is an exciting process, it’s hard not to get bogged down by concerns that you needn’t consider in the traditional workforce, such as figuring out how to pay your own salary or finding the right pension scheme for you. Here to ease your freelance woes is Emma Gannon, host of award-winning podcast, Ctrl, Alt, Delete. Emma, a freelancer of four years, has linked up with NatWest to launch a new guide for freelancers to help them work out their next move. Covering everything from time-management, to personal finances and ‘finding your tribe’, here are Emma’s top tips on leaping into the unknown territory of freelance employment… 1. Open up a business bank account ‘The first thing I did after going freelance was set up a company – as it’s a great way of having both a business and a personal account. I have my personal account, which covers all my personal finances, and then all my work-related payments go in and out of my business account. Keeping separate accounts will allow you to have the work/life separation that you can sometimes lose when you’re self-employed.’ 2. Pay yourself a salary ‘Once you’ve separated your business and personal bank accounts, pay yourself a monthly salary into your personal one. Even if you’ve worked with a big client and had a good income that month, it’s important to keep the amount consistent to even out the ‘lumpy’ salary that many freelancers are all too familiar with. If you’d like to book a holiday or treat yourself and pay more one month, then even it out by paying yourself less the following month to stagger the amount out throughout the year.’ 3. Enlist help with invoices ‘Working out your own invoices will eat up a lot of valuable time. When first starting out, you mightn’t be able to hire an accountant for your invoicing, but there are some great tools available to help you out. You can open a digital business account with Natwest called Mettle, which helps you create and send invoices. Software such as FreeAgent is also available to automatically chase overdue invoices, so you don’t have to worry about tarnishing any relationships by constantly chasing for money owed. Remember to remind contractors of the Late Payment of Commercial Debts Act (1998), which means […]
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