Working for yourself can be a daunting prospect, in spite of the flexibilities and freedoms that it can bring.  Capitalising on the self-employment market is a plethora of publications, all claiming to give you the fool-proof guidance on the best way to do things.  But which one to choose – that’s the question.

 

Probably one of the best we’ve come across to date is the brand new ‘Working for Yourself’ guide from Which?.  As you’d expect, it’s written in a straight-forward, easily accessible manner with plenty of jargon-busting box outs and case studies. 

The guide leads you through everything from considering the type of lifestyle that you’ll be leading working for yourself to dealing with tax and managing cash flow – essential items that every self-employed person needs to consider.  It also looks at the essentials of advertising and marketing, things that you really need to get right – after all, you could have a world leading product, but if no one knows that it exists, they won’t buy it!

We don’t believe that the guide is just for those considering setting up by themselves – there’s plenty in there that established sole traders/micro-biz owners could learn from.  Often self employed business people set up the basics of their company and then, as contracts come rolling in, spend so much time ensuring client satisfaction that they can let ‘the little things’ slip.  The Which? guide provides an ideal reference to help you ensure that you stay on top of just about everything that business life can through at you – and in so doing, grow your own company as a result.

Most helpfully, perhaps, is the pensions and investments guide which gives you all of the different options that you need to consider for the time when you eventually decide to kick back and take it easy. 

‘Working for Yourself’ (part of the Which? essential guide series) can be ordered by calling 01903 828557, from www.which.co.uk or from local bookstores.  It costs £10.99 and if ordered over the telephone, p&P is free.  What more can you ask for!