8 Self Employed Jobs, Perfect For Working For Yourself

Unless you've somehow been blessed with Beyoncé as a manager, you probably love the idea of self employed jobs and working for yourself.

The good news is that the distant dream of self employment is becoming more of a reality; a recent ONS study found that in the last 10 years the number of women in self employment has risen by 57%. The bad news is that fermenting in your trackies watching Love Island on repeat does not count as a career (rude), but here are the top 8 actual jobs to go for if you want to be self employed. Goodbye, overly chatty co-workers!

Graphic Designer

It's a highly creative role, with ideas at the backbone, so you'd need to be motivated to pitch for new business, and build good relationships with clients. It helps to be flexible, as when you have deadlines you'll likely be working longer hours than usual, but it pays off, graphic designers report high job satisfaction, plus mid-level salaries range from £25-35k. Not too shabby.

Tutor

Private tutoring can be a really lucrative self employed job, with the average rate at £32-£40 per hour. Obviously the more thoroughly you know your subject and the more qualified you are, the more you can charge. You'll have to travel to and from your tutees home, so it helps that you decide who you want to take on. Platforms like First Tutors are a good place to find work and build up a solid reputation.

Virtual Assistant

 

This is a great role for anyone with an administrative or assistant background, as you'll be doing the same type of tasks but working remotely (pub, anyone?) you'll have to communicate regularly with your employer who'll be looking for someone they 'match' with. Websites like Virtalent are great for setting up virtual assistants with employers. Oh, and did we mention the £28k average salary?

 

Makeup Artist

Not for the work-shy, make-up artistry often means working weekends and sometimes long, unsociable hours. Plus it takes a long time to build up the solid reputation that will mean consistent work and an decent daily rate (head MUAs average at £170-£320). But the opportunity to travel and being able to do what you love in a creative industry is a huge perk.

Developer

Software development is a booming industry with lots of freelance opportunities, which, incidentally pay on average double those of permanent staff. Plus, developers aren't just hired by tech companies, they're contracted by lots of industries so there are plenty of opportunities to find work.

Personal Trainer

Even though PTs work in specific gyms, they're not gym instructors, so they're typically not hired by the gym but actually working for themselves and trying to win clients. You have to be very self-motivating and willing to work as hard at marketing and sales as you are at working out. Average salaries range anywhere from £20-£100 per hour, and because you work when your clients need you, you've got to be prepared to be very busy early mornings and evenings. Hope you don't like sleep...

Photographer

It's an exciting, fast-paced industry with lots of opportunities to travel and meet exciting people, but again, the hours can be long and unpredictable, with periods of too much work followed by period where work is scarce. Job security is scarce before you've built up your reputation so freelance photographers often supplement their income with relevant side-hustles like teaching photography classes.

Social Media Consultant

Consulting work, generally, is a great avenue for self-employment (with an average salary of £30k, hello!), and in these digital days brands are looking to work with social savvy experts who can help them build their channels. It's often useful to have marketing experience and you'll often find that you're working with brands on specific campaigns so being able to work to a brief is ideal.