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Going it Alone: How to Become a Freelancer and Enjoy Financial Security

January 13th, 2025 Posted in Entrepreneurship
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Switching from being a full-time member of staff to going it alone as a freelancer is something that many people dream of doing. However, the reality of taking a leap into the unknown and becoming self-employed can be a scary and confusing time. The idea of being completely in control, setting their own rates, and no longer answering to a boss is certainly an appealing prospect. However, failing to understand what freelancing actually involves and neglecting to prepare for this can be disastrous. So, before you fire off your resignation letter to your boss, it’s vital to gain a clear understanding of what life as a freelancer will look like in reality and how you can ensure that it will work for you, and your bank balance. 
Knowing that a regular wage will hit your bank account at the same time each month is something that should never be taken for granted. For many new freelancers, the absence of a regular wage is often their number one concern and a source of great anxiety. Being a freelancer will always involve some degree of risk, and won’t come with the same levels of financial security as working in an employed role. However, there are some steps you can take to help improve your financial security while being self-employed. Here, you will find some tips to help you consider how you can keep your finances healthy while working as a freelancer.

Going it Alone: How to Become a Freelancer and Enjoy Financial Security - laptop and cup on desk image

Photo by Peter Olexa:

Avoid an All or Nothing Approach

Making the decision to take the leap and become a freelancer is an exciting opportunity to make a huge change in your life. This is such an exciting time, but it also pays to approach it with a little caution. Taking an all or nothing approach to becoming a freelancer may mean that you quit your job to fully commit to your new way of working. The trouble is, winning clients and getting paid work may be trickier than you anticipated. This can mean that you are stuck with no job and little to no income as you desperately try to build a client base. This situation can be upsetting and demoralising. 

Avoiding an all or nothing approach is often a helpful way to avoid the risks involved in freelancing. Rather than quitting your job and then looking to build up your freelance clientbase, it can be most helpful to do things the other way around. Taking a gradual approach can help you to dip your toe into the world of freelancing and slowly build-up a client base while still working for your employer. You may decide to discuss reducing your working hours with your employer. Potentially, this would allow you to spend part of the week working on your employed job and the other part slowly working on establishing a customer base for your freelance gig. 

Keep up with Your Accounting

Gaining financial security as a freelancer certainly takes time, but one of the most useful ways to make this happen more quickly is by keeping up with your accounting. Keeping all of your financial information about your new business up to date will give you a far clearer picture of how it’s performing. Having financial information about your earnings and expenses that is as up to date as possible is essential if you are to make informed decisions about the operating of your freelance gig and to reduce financial risk. 

Finding an appropriate platform to help you keep up with your accounts and maintain accurate financial records can make it far easier for you to understand your financial position at all times. Choosing the right accounting platform can also help you to deal with one main concern many freelancers experience. Worrying about how much tax they owe can become a huge source of stress and worry for freelancers. No one wants to be hit with an unexpectedly high tax bill, especially when you’re self-employed and solely responsible for paying the bill. To avoid any nasty tax surprises, you may wish to use a free self-assessment app so you can view how much tax you owe in real-time, and even use it to submit your tax return directly to HMRC. Knowing that all your financial information is accurate can provide the peace of mind you are looking for and allow you to focus your attention on doing what you do best.

Make Connections

Knowing where to look for clients and understanding how to maintain a consistent workflow can be a concern for the self-employed. If you only one or two contracts, you may worry that if one of these is cancelled you’ll suffer significant financial hardship. Doing your best to keep hold of your clients by impressing them with your work is the obvious way to ensure they keep using your services. However, sometimes clients may leave for reasons beyond your control. Being prepared for this eventuality is crucial. 

To ensure you always have potential income sources available to you, it helps to make connections within your industry. You can do this by attending conventions, workshops, trade fairs, and networking events in your own community to help you make valuable connections. Each of these connections provides you with a wider pool of potential clients. This means you have a readymade contact list to reach out to if you want to expand your client base, or are simply looking to fill gaps in your income if another client leaves.

As well as making connections with potential clients at formal events, it also helps to stay on the look out for opportunities within your industry in general. Understanding the needs of the industry and what potential clients are looking for will better place you to serve their needs and understand who you need to connect with.

Take Time to Plan

The life of a freelancer is infamous for its feast or famine unpredictability. One month you may earn enough to fund an extremely lavish lifestyle. However, the next month things may be pretty meagre and stretching to a can of beans on toast can be a challenge. Understanding that you will have good months and bad months is so important – almost every freelancer has them, especially at the start of their self-employed journey. While having lucrative months followed by extremely tight months is to be expected, the most important thing is to understand how you mitigate these and gain some level of consistency. One of the best ways to achieve this is by planning your workload effectively.

Attempting to plan your work and deadlines so they are spread evenly wherever possible can make your life as a freelancer a lot easier for you. Spacing out your jobs so that you have enough time to work on each will make it much less stressful for you to meet your deadlines. It also means that you will send out invoices more regularly, rather than completing a raft of deadlines and invoicing for all of them at the same time. This may help you to reduce your stress, and make your workload more manageable while also being paid more consistently with money coming in each month.

Every freelancer operates differently, and how you plan your work will vary depending on the type of clients you have and the kind of work you complete. However, once you get more settled into your new role, you should be able to identify ways that help you to plan better and achieve more balance and consistency with both your workload and your income.

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Landlord-Busting Financial Strategies (for a happy new year)

December 29th, 2024 Posted in Money Tips
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Landlords can take home a lot of your money at the end of the month. Yes, they provide you with housing, but it often seems to come at an exceptionally high cost, especially considering where your income is at the moment. 

That’s where this post can help. It looks at some of the landlord-busting strategies you can use to get back on your financial feet and enjoy living again. 

So, what should you be doing? 

Landlord-Busting Financial Strategies (for a happy new year) Couple moving into a new home image

Maximizing Savings From Rent


The first step is to maximize the savings from your rent. You want to invest in strategies that let you cut down on the costs you already face. 

The simplest solution is often to go to your landlord and negotiate with them for a lower price. Many of the entrepreneurs who own these buildings won’t increase rent if they know you are a long-standing, high-quality tenant who is likely to remain in the property after the initial term. 

You can also do things like splitting the costs with a roommate. Yes, that will involve sharing the space, but it is a tried-and-tested way to reduce outgoings substantially. 

Look For Ways To Fight Back

Another approach is to look for ways to legally fight back against your landlord and get them to foot some of the bill for your accommodation (instead of putting everything on your shoulders). The compensation for housing disrepair amount can be high, so always explore this avenue. Look at the current condition of your rental property and ask whether you could work with a lawyer to benefit from compensation. 

Embrace A Smaller Home

Landlord-Busting Financial Strategies (for a happy new year) Keys and a small house keychain image

Another approach is to embrace a tiny home. Usually, you can buy these yourself from savings. But even if you can’t, tiny homes can be a great way to cut down on living expenses overall. 

If that doesn’t work, you can try co-living spaces. These are usually fixed buildings with like-minded people who simply want to find living arrangements offering them lower costs. Even if it means sharing with other individuals, they don’t mind. 

Partner With Others

Sometimes, you can also partner with other people through so-called “shared ownership schemes.” These are where you split the equity with people you know (or professionals), lowering your mortgage costs and making it easier to move into a home. Yes, you will still need to maintain the property to the desired standards, but you are also building up equity in your house, helping you avoid some of the pitfalls. 

Use Rent-To-Own Agreements

Sometimes, landlords will allow you to enter into rent-to-own agreements. These schemes see part of your rent go to building equity in the property over time. This option is ideal for landlords who want to exit a position, but don’t want to kick you out. This approach lets you pay them extra for the equity in their property over time, eventually turning it into yours. 

So there you have it: some of the landlord-busting strategies you can use to get your own back. Use these when you can’t see a future beyond renting.

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Protecting Your Finances In Times Of Crisis

December 29th, 2024 Posted in Money Tips
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Just when you think you’ve got everything sorted and organised, you run into a problem – and it’s probably a problem that’s going to cost you money because, most of the time, that’s what problems do. And it could be something small like an emergency repair needed around the house, or it could be something big, like an economic downturn, but whatever it is, it’s going to affect you and your money, and that’s scary when you’re not prepared. So, although you can’t always control what happens, there are some things you can do to be ready, just in case, and with that in mind, here’s how to protect your finances when things get a bit tricky; read on to find out more. 

Protecting Your Finances In Times Of Crisis financial management image


Photo by olia danilevich

Build An Emergency Fund 

An emergency fund is the very first thing you should do if you want to protect your finances in times of crisis, and even if you don’t do anything else on this list (or anything else full stop), building an emergency fund really does have to be a priority. It’s got to cover somewhere between three and six months of living expenses, but although that might sound like a scary number, it’s not as bad as you might think – you can start small and save what you can. After all, even having a few hundred pounds and having that when you need it can make a difference. 

The key is to treat your emergency fund like something untouchable and sacred – it’s only for emergencies, not for little treats because as soon as you start going down that road, you’ll end up spending it on things that you don’t need, and you won’t have it when you do need it. All that hard work would have been for nothing. 

Stay On Top Of Your Income 

One of the most worrying things that can happen when it comes to protecting your finances is if you lose your job – that income you relied on every month is no longer there, and that’s where big problems can very quickly arise. So, if the worst does happen and you do lose your job, don’t panic because that’s going to waste time you don’t have – instead, get creative and think outside the box to bring some money in, no matter how little it might be. 

Could you become a freelancer, for example (even if it’s just temporarily) thanks to the skills you’ve picked up? Or could you start a side hustle? What about selling your stuff online if you no longer need it? And don’t forget about potential compensation either – if an injury means you can’t work, looking into options like personal injury compensation might be wise because you could get some financial relief and that can take a lot of pressure off. 

Know Your Expenses

When a financial crisis hits, knowing where your money actually goes each month can really make a difference – and it’s something you might not have thought about before when you have enough money to cover everything without any issues. The first step is to take some time to look into what you’re spending and think about what’s essential (rent, utilities, food, and so on) and what’s not – then you can prioritise the essentials immediately and save a lot of issues. 

This is the perfect time to trim a little fat from your bank account, so while you’re going through everything, think about whether it not it’s something you need or whether it’s something you want but could do without, at least for a while (don’t forget, the idea is to get you back on your feet, so none of the changes have to be permanent, unless you realise you actually don’t need whatever it is you’re cancelling). You might be able to save a lot of money doing that, a surprising amount in most cases, and it can show you just how much money you’re ‘wasting’ on things that aren’t important. 

Speak To Your Creditors 

If you’re having problems with paying your bills, loans, credit cards, and so on, it can definitely be something that causes a lot of stress and sleepless nights, but there is something you can do to make it better – speak to your creditors. That might sound like the worst thing you could do and something you’d actively want to avoid, but it’s the best way to sort things out and get back on track. 

The fact is that many lenders are willing to offer some kind of temporary relief, like payment holidays or reduced payments, especially if you give them a heads up early on. Remember, things happen in life and even if you never thought it would happen, sometimes it – whatever it might be – does. But being proactive and showing that you’re still responsible despite what’s happened can save you a lot of stress and financial problems, so it’s got to be done. 

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Planning For Your Financial Future Is Always A Good Idea

December 26th, 2024 Posted in Money Tips
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Planning your financial future is something that we all need to do. There are so many people who are not set up for their future, and they have no idea what a shock they are going to be in for when they are struggling later down the line. We understand the need to live in the present and not put too much stock in the future, but then what happens when the future comes knocking?

Then you’re going to be in a little bit of trouble! So, to avoid that you need to plan well, and that’s what we’re going to be talking about today. Keep reading if you would like to find out more.

Planning For Your Financial Future Is Always A Good Idea - bank notes image

Photo by Suzy Hazelwood:

Save Money

Of course, the first thing that we’re going to say you need to do is save money. Saving is one of the most important factors when it comes to planning for the future because it means that you have some kind of funds tucked away, no matter what happens. The great thing about this is that it means you have some money to live on if things get bad, if you need to purchase something that you cannot outright afford, or if you lose your job for example. It’s nice to have this little safety net there to catch you when you fall.

Clear Your Debts

Another thing that you’re going to need to do is get your debts cleared off. The longer it takes you to do this, the longer you are going to have that massive grey cloud above your head, and who needs that? Who needs a constant reminder that they owe money? It’s annoying and it’s not productive to get you in a good financial position, is it?

So, you need to contact your creditors and start paying off the money that you owe. The more that you can pay off at first, the better. From there, set up a payment plan that is affordable to you, and always make the payments on time.

Make Future Plans

The final thing that we want to cover is making future plans for your money. By this, we mean sorting out a will for yourself, contacting funeral directors to make plans for your funeral and pay for it so that this is sorted, and generally give instructions about what you want done with your money. It might feel like a super morbid thing to do, but it’s necessary. It ensures that your last wishes are carried out, and takes some of the pressure off of your family while they are mourning your loss. Get it done as soon as you can, as you can always update it down the line if needed.

Hopefully you have found this article helpful, and now have a stronger understanding around how you can plan for your financial future. We’re sure that this information hasn’t been anything that you do not already know, but it’s important that you are getting it sorted nonetheless. If you’ve not started your plans just yet, you better get started!

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4 Ways To Do A Quick Financial Overview For The New Year

December 17th, 2024 Posted in Money Tips
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Coming up to the new year certainly can bring around a lot of time to reflect on how the year has gone, whether that is through your career progression, family life, travelling plans or your financial situation. You may have succeeded in your goals or maybe have forgotten about them completely and need to re-evaluate how you will then tackle them this year. With so many financial issues at the forefront of people’s minds, having an effective and realistic plan on how you are going to deal with your finances for the next year would be a great way to start your new year planning.

4 Ways To Do A Quick Financial Overview For The New Year

Photo by Bich Tran:

Get Professional Advice

You may feel completely overwhelmed with your financial situation and have no clue where to start. If that is the case there is so much out there to help you. Whether that is debt advice, restructuring your finances with the bank or even hiring an accountant. Hiring an accountant is very beneficial especially if you are self-employed as they will be able to help you with your deductions and reduce your tax bill.

Get What You Are Owed 

Now would be the perfect time before the year is out to make sure you have any money you are owed. Are you waiting on a tax return that you can follow up on? Checking your energy suppliers is also a great thing to do as there may be a lump sum of credit on the account you can claim back. You may also be able to claim money from any complaints or grievances you have had. This could be making a claim against the council for negligence or you may have had a car accident and can claim and seek advice for that. 

Do An Outgoing Audit

At the end of the year is the best time to audit all of your outgoings and make sure you are aware of what exactly is going out. You could be surprised at how much you could be saving from cancelling things. There are plenty of times people sign up for a free trial and forget to cancel them after, you may not even be using that app or service. So make sure you are cancelling anything you don’t need, which could also be from magazine subscriptions to gym memberships. You can also see how much you are paying for certain things like utilities and your TV package and speak to your providers. A lot of the time, just asking you may be able to get a better deal and lower the monthly cost of what you are paying.

Be Sure To Assess The Household Finances

One of the issues a lot of households face when it comes to their finances is hiding things from each other. It is important to be open and honest and help each other when needed. Assessing your finances as a whole each year will make sure you have no nasty surprises or huge bills coming through the door that you aren’t able to manage. 

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