Lucas Cimno, UoR graduate, BA Entrepreneurship and Management with Placement, Freelance Videographer, Data Analyst at Duke Media
- What or who inspired you to become self-employed?
- Self-employment has always been a trait taught to me by my father. It is a matter of making things happen with the tools you have around you.
- What are your top five tips for those looking to become self-employed?
- Don’t look to become self-employed, just do it.
- You need a mission/business model that drives you as a person. One that is solely based on making money will not work.
- It is not a one-way street. You can always go back to having an employer.
- Don’t ever expect things from people. You need to give them a reason to do what you ask of them
- Treat the people you work with as people, not as machines. Business relationship are the same as friendships.
- What do you wish you had known before becoming self-employed?
- Tax sucks. Knowing the details of how and when you need to pay taxes is very important.
- What are the biggest challenges you have faced in self-employment?
- When you are a sole trade, things can get very mentally challenging. You compare yourself to your own idea of what you should be doing. It can get tough. Bring in other people when you can to take over the parts of the business.