As an On-Demand Worker (#Freelancer or #Gig-ger), you need to stay on top of your financials. There are many accounting, tax, and financial resources on the market.
According to Score.org, the majority of small business owners spend more than 41 hours on tax preparation each year. The breakdown of responses reveals that of the small business owners surveyed,
- 40% spend 80+ hours/year
- 18% spend 41-80 hours/year
- 15% spend 21-40 hours/year
- 28% Spend <21 hours/year
And 40% of small business owners say bookkeeping and taxes are the worst part of owning a business. Specifically:
- 47% dislike the financial cost
- 13% dislike administrative headaches and time
- 13% dislike the complexity of compliance
- 10% dislike changing regulations and confusion
- 8% dislike all the paperwork
- 8% dislike inequity of the tax code
If you can, I recommend you work with an accountant, bookkeeper or financial planner.
Find a Financial Advisor (Accountant):
Accounting software for Freelancers:
Resources:
- Xero’s Small Business Guides for Independent Contractors
- Are you a W-2 or a 1099 Determinator
- Intuit Independent Contractor Classification
- Tax Topics for Freelancers, Contractors and Consultants
- Pros and Cons of Hiring an Independent Contractor
- Xero has an excellent guide on the benefits of Independent Contracting (I wrote it : )
