Should I Be My Own Boss? The Pros & Cons of Being An Independent Contractor

As an independent contractor, you are your own boss. You cut out the middle man and get to keep all the cash, and all the control. But, like most things in life, of course it’s not constant smooth sailing. Take a look at these pros and cons to find out whether this work/lifestyle choice is right for you.

Freedom
The Positive
In an ideal world, working for yourself means you can set your own hours. If you hate getting out of bed on Mondays, you don’t have to. You can go on holidays at a moment’s notice and give yourself as much annual leave as you see fit.

The Negative
On the other hand, you’d have to be quite established to enjoy the pros listed above. While in theory, the self-employed can choose their own hours, in actuality, you could find yourself a slave to your gigs. When you’ve got a mortgage to pay, a family to feed, and varying quantities of work coming in, you really have to work as much as possible — whenever the bell chimes.

No One To Answer To
The Positive
Wouldn’t it be great if you had no bossy boots standing over you? No one to tell you what to do or how to do it? You could do things your own way which is obviously better, with no one to glower at you when you’re a few minutes late or need to take a break. Be your own boss and leave these worries behind.

The Negative
When you think about it, your boss actually has a harder job than you. Not least because they take all the responsibility on their shoulders. Working for yourself, you take on this responsibility. As your own boss, whenever something goes wrong, you’re accountable; whenever client’s aren’t happy, you’re to blame and you have to face them.

Money
The Positive
It doesn’t seem fair that a slice of your hard earned nuggets goes to someone else, whether that be a boss or a company. As an independent contractor, you get to pocket everything you earn. Your pay suddenly jumps from $30 per job to $80 per job.

The Negative
Although you’re pocketing every cent the client hands over at the end of a gig, you don’t actually get to keep this money in the long term. There are your expenses to pay such as tools and petrol, plus tax and superannuation. Finally, there’s all the extra work that goes into being your own payroll officer, bookkeeper and accountant.

Job Security
The Positive
As master-of-your-own-destiny, at least you know you’re never going to get fired. You’ll never be made redundant, nor will your shifts be halved overnight. You’ll never get bought out by the mafia and you’ll never be forced out of a career due to workplace bullying.

The Negative
When you’re self-employed, you know you’ll always have a job. Whether you’ll be getting paid in that job is another question. As an independent contractor, you’re really at the whims of the market, so whenever the economy takes a downturn, you’re going to feel it.

Tax
The Positive
Work for yourself and get all the tax benefits that come with running a business. You get to claim everything from your name tag to your utility vehicle.

The Negative
Keeping on top of taxes is not as easy as when you’re self-employed. Receipts tend to build up and forgetting your BAS can incur penalties. Unless you’re calculating your tax as you go, you won’t know how much personal tax you owe until the end of the financial year, and by then you could already be in serious trouble.

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