Freelancer · How to Start?The complete guide · from choosing a track to your first invoice, without opening a file

Today many people want to work independently · to earn more, manage their own time and choose the projects that suit them. But the move from salaried employee to self-employed involves no small amount of bureaucracy · opening a file with the Tax Authority, VAT and National Insurance, dealing with bookkeeping and more.

Before you set out, it is worth paying attention to a few parameters:

• A competitive edge · choose a field where you have an advantage, ability and ambition.
• A marathon · this is a long road that may include bumps and challenges along the way.
• Financial stability · keep a reserve to weather cash flow that can challenge any business.
• Bureaucracy · opening a file, documents, periodic reports and capital declarations · not for those who dislike paperwork.
• The dream · freedom, flexibility, profit, and above all realizing your own potential.

Who is suited to start working as a freelancer?

Some people like to run their own way of life and do not like being told what to do · these are the freelancers. Being a freelancer is a matter of character, on top of talent and professionalism. Freelancers choose the freedom to pick their clients and projects, manage their own time, and through a lean, efficient way of working they also save the fixed costs of running a business and create a competitive advantage. Unlike employees who receive a payslip, freelancers are not protected by labor law and must stand up for their rights through the contract between them and their clients.

Still deciding whether to become a freelancer?

Of course you are · it is a decision with a lot of weight and consequences. You need to plan as many steps ahead as possible, while also accounting for the unexpected. Sometimes it simply happens · a client asks for your service and agrees to your price, and then needs you to issue an invoice so they can pay, and another client arrives on a recommendation · and just like that, it happens. But you still have not opened a file, and maybe it will not last forever · is it the right moment to set out on the journey?

Two more important pricing rules

• Precise definitions · a precise definition of the work scope for each task and project makes all the difference.
• Place of work · price in a way that accounts for the location · it affects unexpected expenses.
• Social benefits · your pricing should include social rights such as vacation, pension and recovery pay, as well as the cost of payments to the authorities.
• Pension and severance · every employee is entitled to this by law, so you deserve it too · it is important, strategic, and even lowers your tax.
• Personal and professional insurance · make sure with the client that they have policies that cover you too, and if not · arrange insurance independently.
• Prepare for the unexpected · intellectual property and dispute resolution · define in the agreement what is permitted and what is not.