Customer Rating: Summary: Works! Comment: This is an excellent introductory guide to starting your own business. It covers the different forms of organization, book-keeping, taxation, insurance, retirement, domain names and trademarks. It has templates for an asset log, expense journal, invoice, independent contractor agreement and an NDA. I also found the table of contents and the index useful for quickly finding information i was looking for.
I'm docking star because the template forms should be included in electronic format. Customer Rating: Summary: Dry, but filled with useful content Comment: Like so many of my peers, I've had the entrepreneurial fantasy of starting my own business and being my own boss. I had only the vaguest understanding of all of the realities of such an undertaking. If you are looking in that direction, this is an important book. It's not literature. It is dry reading, but it is also concisely written and filled with useful information.
This book will not tell you how to run a business day to day, or how to set up a business plan. It will not tell you how to be an employer. It is designed for the self-employed individual - as opposed to the small businessman. This book covers legal and accounting issues, basic business concepts, and tax issues. It also covers a lot of issues regarding establishing a business and basic business practices.
The author uses examples to clarify difficult concepts, and much information is also illuminated through the solid use of charts and tables. The author also provides model forms that readers can use as models.
The author wisely opens with and repeats the caveat that readers should not substitute this book for the advice of an attorney when serious legal conflicts arise.
Customer Rating: Summary: Essential Guidance for the Self-Employed Comment: This is a book I wish that I had many years ago when I spent 4 years as an independent software contractor. It is a down-to-earth guide to the fundamentals of working as an independent, covering everything from setting up the business to planning for retirement.
This is not a hokey 'secrets of independent consulting' book. Instead, it is a balanced guide, explaining pros and cons for many of the decisions that you will need to make. Fishman explains in detail the advantages, disadvantages, and risks of each of the major forms of business (LLC, S-Corp, corporation, sole proprietorship, and partnership). He also points out the advantages and disadvantages of being employed by someone else vs. being self-employed. When first starting as a contractor it is easy enough to forget all the costs and risks you will need to bear: health insurance, liability insurance, retirement savings, self-employment tax (which is twice the social security tax you've been paying), office space, etc. Fishman lays it all out. He also gives some guidance on how to price your services: the short answer is '2.5 to 3 times your equivalent salary', but he also gives more detailed guidance.
Possibly the most useful part of the book has to do with contracts. He covers the many pitfalls you are likely to encounter in the 'standard', 'boilerplate' contracts you may be offered, and itemizes the types of provisions that you absolutely need to avoid, and offers alternatives that would be more acceptable. He also suggests a number of provisions that should think about adding to your contracts.
Anyone who has contracted knows that it is hard to avoid late-payers and outright deadbeats. Fishman offers a number of suggestions to reduce the risk, and ensure that you maintain a good cash-flow.
The book covers many other areas of finance, taxes, insurance, etc. If you are planning to go independent, or even if you already are contracting, you need this book.
Customer Rating: Summary: The Best Resource for Freelancers Comment: If you were to just flip through this book without a specific topic in mind, you might find your head swimming with the shear amount of information contained within. Of course, you would buy this book as a reference for all things related to owning and running a small business, not casual reading.
As with any reference work, you would use it for something like drawing up a client agreement, finding out details about business taxes, or perhaps you might just utilize one of the many example forms that are provided in the back of the book.
Another useful feature is in Chapter 21 "Help Beyond this Book" which gives advice on resolving disputes, finding a lawyer, and doing your own legal research. It also gives current internet resources for the self-employed.
As someone who has a freelance business, I found many chapters that apply to my specific situation and will no doubt be helpful in the future.
Customer Rating: Summary: An excellent guide to taxes for small business owners Comment: I immediately found this book to be helpful. Not only does the author spell out in clear and approachable language the tax issues that small business owners face, the book also explains different types of corporations an owner can form as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each. Fishman also provides sound advise for how to price services, how to reduce income taxes and how to be aware of other pitfalls and advantages of being self-employed. This is an essential book that every self-employed professional should have.
Be your own boss -- easily, efficiently and successfully -- with this bestseller!
Whether you're an independent contractor, freelancer, or consultant, it all adds up to the same thing: You need to be more aware of laws and taxes than the average person.
Fortunately, Working for Yourself provides all the information you need to stay on top of it all. An independent contractor himself, Stephen Fishman shows you everything you need to know to:
meet business start-up requirements
pick a business structure
set up home or outside offices
obtain permits and licenses
price your services or products
comply with strict IRS rules
establish sound business relationships
avoid unfair contracts
draft good agreements
keep good records
get paid in full and on time
and much, much more
The 7th edition is completely revised to provide the up-to-date information you need, including the most current tax rates and changes in the law.
Whether you already work for yourself or are thinking about making the move, Working for Yourself will help make sure you do it right.
