Welcome to The Loaf - making money & business more approachable for self-employed creatives & freelancers
There's a lot of bad financial advice on the internet.
Whether it's wrong or inapplicable, few things you read apply to your situation as a self-employed creative.
So this article is the opposite of that.
I've been a freelancer & a financial planner for the past couple of years, so these 10 pieces of advice are formed from firsthand experience:
1) Withhold 20-30% for taxes
2) Simplify your financial tech stack
3) Automate everything
4) Do frequent bookkeeping
5) Know your deductions
6) Insure for security
7) Invest in your skillset
8) Invest for retirement
9) Build a proper cash reserve
10) Hire help when needed
For more context (and 2 bonus pieces of advice), check out the full article:
Friendly money & business reminders for self-employed creatives
âś… Finish January's bookkeeping
Why? I promise, it's less stressful to do your business' bookkeeping throughout the year rather than waiting until tax season to do it all.
• I like to review & categorize transactions bi-weekly. I'll block off 30 minutes on my calendar, do it, and not worry about it until next time.
• This makes bookkeeping more manageable and gives you important financial insights for your business throughout the year - such as profitability and cash flow reports (yes, even one-person businesses need to do these things)
âś… Send out any remaining 1099s
Why? If you paid a contractor more than $600 last year, you most likely need to file Form 1099-NEC to report their income
• If you received more than $600 from a brand or company, you should start receiving 1099s soon. Then you can start sending them to your accountant & filing taxes.
• The deadline to send out 1099-NEC to contractors is January 31st
• Further reading:  IRS' List of 1099 Due DatesÂ
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Thanks for reading đź–¤
Treyton DeVore
