Working self-employed certainly has a lot of perks. You’re your own boss, and you can start and finish when you want to, work with whom you like, and schedule your day to your liking without the influence of someone else. You also often have the opportunity to work from home, either some days or entirely. 

That said, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. While you don’t have the pressure of someone constantly breathing down your neck, it’s important to remember that this can be both a blessing and a curse. You’ve got to hold yourself to account, and this can be a big struggle for some people. There’s also the matter of having to do everything on your own; it can take time to become accustomed to this. 

To help you out, this article will cover three tools and services you can use to make your self-employed life much easier.

Project Management and Time-Tracking Tools

Being your own boss isn’t just about completing the individual tasks that are right in front of you: it’s about managing larger projects over time and organising things in a timely fashion. 

 

Companies have entire teams dedicated to this, so if you’re on your own, you’ll likely need some help. Thankfully, there are several tools on the market ready to assist. 

Applications like Toggl and Notion, or even simple to-do list apps, can go a long way in helping you organise complex jobs into something more digestible. You could also try something like Miro, which is fully scalable digital spider diagram software that can help you organise your thoughts more clearly.

Digitising Your Tax

Managing tax is a major part of any successful sole trader’s work, and there are many ways you can go about it. One of the best ways is to use something like Making Tax Digital, which is designed to help you stay compliant with tax rules and regulations without getting lost in complicated spreadsheets. This platform is essentially a digital assistant used to ensure nothing slips through the cracks. 

The traditional approach of having physical bits of paper in a filing cabinet has now been largely abandoned. With tools like these, all records are digitised and backed up, so you never have to worry about losing something important ever again.

Client Communication Services

Client communication should be at the very forefront of your business as a self-employed person, and there’s plenty out there that can help you. 

Premium subscriptions for Zoom or Teams are a must for video conferencing, and services like Calendly can make the process of booking meetings a breeze, negating the need to figure out the logistics around time zones. For larger businesses, something like HubSpot can assist in managing leads and tracking progress more effectively. 

Wrapping Up 

Hopefully, you now feel a little bit more confident about your work as a self-employed individual. While it might take some getting used to at first, a prosperous career awaits you if you’re ready to reach out and grab it. Good luck!