It always seems so attractive…to be your own boss…to not answer to anyone but your customers.  But is starting a small business all it’s cracked up to be?

Skill Set Required

Having been an independent contractor for a few years, I took the advice of my peers and set up what’s known as an S-Corporation.  The client I was contracted with, required that I had my own business set up, and given the options for organizations, S-Corp was the best option for me.

I had no idea how much work was required outside the standard work that I was required to do as a contractor.

So, in addition to my skills as a systems consultant, I was required to understand:

• Basic business accounting
  • Tracking receipts
  • Knowing which expenses needing to be tracked
• Billing/Accounts Receivables
• Payroll
  • Calculating withholding for Federal, State, local, Social Security, Medicare, Unemployment and State Disability taxes (yes, all of them)
  • W-2 processing (yes, you have to issue your own W-2)
• Tax Accounting – this was for me, by far the most daunting task that I completely underestimated
• Insurance needs
  • Errors & Omissions Coverage
  • Workers Compensation
• Legal understanding of contracts and statements of work
• Contract/Fees Negotiations
• Marketing
• Customer Relations

Don’t get me wrong…some of these skills can be purchased (and should be, in my humble opinion).  But government certainly doesn’t make it easy to start a small business.

Current Knitting

The Niece Blanket is progressing, and I”m hopeful I’ll have it done in time to show it off at the Men’s Knitting Retreat in a couple of weeks.

So far, I’ve completed almost 50 inches in length and will probably do another 10 inches.  So completion is fully possible.