The benefits of being self employed

 This is a sponsored post with Diamond Bloggers.

When I was pregnant with Noah, I knew I didn’t want to put him in daycare if possible. I wanted to be able to be home with him and take care of him full time. It was really important to me. After he turned two, I decided that I wanted to work from home. This was when blogging was in its infancy. So, I have always liked to write and I decided to work from home. It was interesting in the beginning because I didn’t really know exactly what I was doing. I had made some mistakes but I learned and grew from them. I am considered a independent contractor and not an employee of any brands I work with. Being self employed can definitely have its ups and downs. I remember crying at the beginning that I wouldn’t have companies to work with. Being self employed can be scary at first because you are not sure if it will work out. It’s totally worth it.

There’s many benefits of being self employed. The main one for me was being able to be home with Noah. I didn’t have to worry about finding and paying for daycare. I am able to travel whenever I want and can work from anywhere. It’s nice to be your own boss and create your own schedule. I have deadlines to meet but usually I can set my own hours. If I am not feeling well or if Noah’s not feeling well, I can take care of him or me. It’s nice to be able to go pick him up from school and not have to worry about taking too much time off. Blogging is great most of the time.

There’s also a downside to blogging or any self employed job. Some types of self employed jobs, depending on what you would like to do, may have some start up costs. If you make things to sell, you will need to have money to do so. If you want to sell anything where you need inventory you will also need capital. While blogging doesn’t require physical inventory, you still need a good computer, internet, domain and hosting.

Thankfully, there are self employed loans that you can qualify for to get your business off the ground. Self employed loans are different than regular loans you can get at your bank. They are specifically for self employed people. The lender is educated in small businesses and may be mid understanding. They may even be able to provide you with some good solid business advice. They want to help you. They want you to succeed.

There’s some uncertainty about whether or not you will like it, you are not sure you will be in the black or if you will make money. You definitely have to be focused and self driven. You may not have a steady income for a while or ever. I don’t always know if I am going to have work every month. It can be a bit nerve-racking. Being self employed has taught me how to budget and save for those months where I am not successful as I would like. It’s also taught me patience and I have made a lot of good friends and connections.