How to Become Self Employed in 2025

Are you interested in becoming self-employed? Then, look no further.

Becoming self-employed isn’t easy, or for everyone – but if it suits your personality, then it’s worth the effort it takes to become your own boss.

I left my career as a teacher to become a full-time working-from-home writer in 2023.

I know what it takes to make the switch to being a full-time employee with a steady salary, benefits and pension – to now being self-employed, and suddenly having none of that.

But, I love the freedom of:

• working from wherever I want
• being able to take breaks when I need to
• having the energy for my kids when they get home
• travelling whenever I want
• not having to report to a boss
• spending my days with minimal human interaction (as I’m an introvert)

Your career path may be very different from mine, but I’m going to show you how YOU can create a life that involves fulfilling your life’s dreams.

This involves:

a) choosing the path that is well suited to your unique blend of skills, interests and talents
b) effectively setting up a profitable business model
c) making the leap by quitting your job (if you’re currently employed)

I think everyone who wants to, should be able to contribute to the world in a way that is natural and enjoyable for them.

I am so blessed to now be able to do it, and I want to help you do it too.

So, let’s jump in – your guide on how to become self-employed!

#1 Tip When Searching for Self-Employment

The internet has romanticized the idea of ‘quitting the 9-5,’ and living off a passive income that allows you to be free, and travel whenever you want to.

My advice is – don’t chase any self-employment opportunity solely for monetary gains. Make sure you are equally as interested in the journey as you are the destination.

As you research alternative income streams online, you’ll encounter countless people trying to sell you courses and coaching programs, promising to teach you how to become rich and successful in pretty much every niche imaginable. Keep in mind, that sometimes people profit more from selling their advice than from actually doing what they teach, and they prey on people like you and me, who feel stuck in unfulfilling, low paying jobs like you and are looking for a way out. Stay critical, do your own research, and don’t fall for overpriced programs that offer little real value.

I am not saying that anytime someone is trying to sell you an opportunity, that its a scam.

I bought many courses and coaching on my journey to self-employment while working as a teacher; some which ended up being valuable and others which weren’t.

Before you get signed up for anything, I want you to get focused and clear on what kind of job would be most up your alley.

How to Become Self-Employed in 5 (Not So Easy) Steps

Step # 1: Deciding what kind of self-employment is right for you

Sometimes the hardest part that keeps people from taking the leap to self-employment is:

• not knowing exactly what they want to do, or
• feel discouraged about the possibilities of making an income from the things they’re interested in.

 What you ultimately want to do is determine your “Zone of Genius,” a concept that Gay Hendricks talks about in his career change book, The Big Leap (which I’d highly recommend reading by the way, especially if you’re looking at changing careers.)

Your ‘zone of genius’ is the area where your unique blend of interests, passions, strengths and gifts. When you’re in your zone of genius, it doesn’t feel like ‘work,’ because you’re so immersed and focused on the task; it’s a natural way that you’re able to give to the world that doesn’t come naturally to everyone.

If everyone in the world had the opportunity to be in their zone of genius where they could express their blend of unique gifts and talents, the world would be a really amazing place.

However, it’s not easy for everyone to find their zone of genius.

Here are some tips to help you narrow down what your zone of genius looks like.

a) Write down the problems and issues that you’re passionate about

What kinds of things are you interested in, or passionate about? Write down the things that come to mind.

For me, the kind of things that spark my interest are:

I have a long list of these, and many other things that interest me – it wasn’t clear right away how I could turn any of these things into a job that I could get paid – let alone get paid well for.

But don’t worry about that yet. Just sit in a quiet spot and write down all of the things that you love.

Next, think about the next question:

b) What is a problem people have that you can solve?

Business ideas come from the ability to solve a problem that other people have.

What are you naturally good at that other people are not so good at or enjoy doing?

Think of your hobbies and interests that you wrote down above, and brainstorm what kids of problems people have related to those things because you have natural gifts, talents or interests in that area.

Here are a few of my interests are, along with something that I naturally enjoy and do well related to them:

travel –I’m really good at researching and planning trips, and putting itineraries together.
writing – I’m good at writing in a way that resonates with other people. I have an empathetic nature that helps me reach others through my writing
foreign languages – I’m really good at figuring out the mechanics of any language and pick it up the language quickly (In addition to English, I speak French, Spanish, Swedish and bits of a few other languages.)

If you’re having trouble, ask yourself these things:

• What is something that people have asked you for help with?
• What is something you enjoy doing for others?
• What is something you care about, enjoy and comes so easily for you that you would almost do it for free?

c) Do some soul searching

It can take a lot of soul-searching to figure out exactly what you want to do. I thought about it for years, until one day the answer just stared me plain the face.

I recommended The Big Leap by Gay Hendrix above that can help get you on the path to figuring out what you love and are good at doing.

See my other recommendations for career change books here.

b) Find your ‘genius zone’zone of genius’

The easiest and most lucrative way to make money is by doing something that you’re naturally inclined to do.

It doesn’t matter if you think you’re ‘good’ at it or not (because you can always improve or get better.)

The key is that it’s something you enjoy doing enough that it doesn’t feel too laboursome.

A sign that you’re meant to do something (in your zone of genius):

• The tasks of the job align with your core passions
• When working on it, you can easily lose track of time because of your deep thought and immersion in the activity
• Your work has a positive impact on the world around you; often benefiting others and inspiring because of your proficiency and passion for it

Step # 2: Putting together a business

By the time you’ve figured out what you love doing, and a natural problem that you can solve for others – its time to put a business idea together.

You may need to look into the following (all or some) below:

• Brick and mortar Not all businesses need a brick and mortar (mine doesn’t.)
• Website Not all businesses need a website, but having a website helps you stand out among other businesses that don’t bother having one
• Social media pages Choose 1-2 platforms that make sense for your niche. Something visual and marketed to a millennial demographic should definitely be on Instagram. If it’s more tech-oriented, you might be better off marking on LinkedIn

a) Determine how you will take payment

Taking payment is the bread and butter to having a business. Will this be a service or product based business where you will need to take payment, or are you building a passive income stream?

You may need to determine pricing. When figuring out pricing, make sure you are charging enough for your business to be sustainable for you.

I’ve seen some businesses shut down because the owner wasn’t charging enough to make their work worthwhile, and ended up burning out. Don’t do that.

Think about the value your product or service brings and charge people enough that it covers your costs and time.

This is a big part of money mindset. If this is something you think you’d struggle with, then I recommend reading some money mindset books (these books changed my life.)

b) Getting the word out there!

It isn’t enough to just build a website, or set up a social media page and start posting.

If you want your business to be successful, you’re going to have to put yourself out there. That means shouting from the rooftops that your business exists.

This is the tricky and scary part for a lot of new entrepreneurs. They may have a great product and a beautiful website, if they’re not doing the marketing it and getting the word out – then it will be very hard to get the business off the ground.

You will need to figure out how you’re going to get enough eyeballs on your business, in order to drive the sales and success you need for your efforts to be sustainable.

It comes down to a numbers game. The more people who know about your business, the more sales you can make

Here are some ways to market your business

• Find out who your ideal customer is. What gender, and age are they? Where do they live? And most importantly – what kind of media do they consume? (This influences where they hang out online)
• Ensure that you’re marketing in places where your customer tends to spend time. If your clientele is people in their 20s, then you should consider marketing on platforms like TikTok, Instagram or Blue Sky.
• If you market on social media, then read up on how to do so effectively. If you have the budget, you could hire a social media manager. But if not, then read up on how to grow a social media following and market yourself effectively on social media. It can be very platform and business dependent and it isn’t as simple as just publishing posts!

Step # 3: Tying up loose ends (with your current job) + making the official switch

If you aren’t currently employed, then this part is a lot simpler -you likely have the free time to focus on the launch and startup your business.

However, for people who are employed full-time like I was when I started my business, it’s not so easy.

When do you make the leap, and cut the final ties with your current job?

That choice will be different for everyone, and dependent on your finances, and many other things. Here are the tips I have and recommendations:

• Consider finances. Do you have savings to fall back on
• Consider your support system – who you live with and if they’re on board for supporting your temporarily smaller income while you’re still getting your business off the ground. My husband understood my situation and was 100% supportive of my dream to start a travel blog

Resources for Self-Employment

These are some useful resources below on becoming self employed

• 16personalities personality test if you find yourself still unsure on what type of job is most suitable for your personality. The test is free and gives you career suggestions based on your strengths and weaknesses
• Guide on how to start a business by GoDaddy, applicable to all countries. They offer great tips which you can find here
• Self-employment in Canada some resources to read up on if you’re starting a business in Canada
• My guide on starting a tutoring business if this is something that interests you

Self-Employment FAQ

Here are the most commonly asked questions about self-employment in general

What are the disadvantages of being self-employed?

There are many disadvantages to being self-employed, depending on the type of business you have. For one, it can be lonely being the boss – especially if you’re your only co-worker. You don’t necessarily have the same security as you would being employed. Onboarding other people is tough, and it can be difficult

What is the best self-employed business?

There is no ‘best’ self-employed business. The right business to start for you depends on where your blend of knowledge, expertise, interests and passions lie. For some, that may look from running a home-based business; for others, they want to be out in the public, interacting with others.

Final Thoughts on the Road to Self-Employment

I hope that this guide has got you started on starting a fulfilling business where you can be your own boss. For me, it was something something that I pondered for years before finally taking the leap I’ve written what would have been helpful to me when I was unsure what route to take. In the end, becoming self-employed was the best decision I ever made,