Which do you think is better- being an employee, being self-employed or having a Portfolio Career?

Being an employee has its benefit

A regular income, no tax headaches because your employer does that through PAYE, paid holidays, paid parental leave, workplace pensions, health insurance and other such perks. So why do so many people love to be self-employed?

What's not to like about being your own boss?

Having creative freedom over your work and your business, choosing who you work with, when you work and where you work in the world- a virtual office, a digital nomad on a white sandy beach in Zanzibar. Imagine being able to fit work around your personal life and what is important to you? The downside of self-employment is that you are responsible for its success, finding gigs, marketing yourself, developing yourself professionally, and tax returns. Is it more secure to be employed or self-employed? The jury is out on that with so many industries being disrupted by innovation. Self-employment is definitely something to consider if you are someone who has entrepreneurial skills, who isn't afraid of hard work, isn't too risk averse, has great time management skills and are good at planning ahead because the buck stops with you!

Portfolio Careers

A Portfolio Career is one that includes lots of different kinds of jobs and professional experiences that are often unrelated. These could be side-hustles, part time, contract, or freelance work. A Portfolio Career allows you to test drive different career paths, follow a passion, zigzagging through different experiences. Change is the one constant in the world of work and a Portfolio Career could help your future-proof your employability by developing a varied and unique transferable skill set. Pursuing a Portfolio Career can mean you take on a lot of different kinds of roles simultaneously so watch that work life balance! Other drawbacks may be lack of career progression because you may never around long enough to get promoted, some employers may also worry you'll be gone as soon as the next shiny thing catches you eye.

Final Thought

The global pandemic impacted and disrupted absolutely everything about how we live our lives, including how we work. Make sure you feel confident that you could survive any kind of future economy. The more flexible you are, the more you develop and upskill yourself, the more you're able to adapt to conditions outside of your control and thrive. When push comes to shove, You decide which kind of working style suits you best - a lot of it will be down to your own preferences and personality. The choice is yours!

Suggested Reading

> Is self-employment right for you
> 10 benefits being self-employed
> Business tools for self-employment
> A portfolio career

By Anna Gordon - Certified Business Coaching Psychologist ABP CBCP