There's good news for entrepreneurs who need help but aren't ready to hire full-time employees. Between January and July 2004, the ranks of part-time workers grew from 24.3 million to 25.5 million according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It was also learned that from June to July the increase came from people who wanted to work part-time and not because they couldn't find full-time employment.
It seems that 1.7 million part-timers hold two or more part-time jobs, and do this by choice. Such workers will be harder to convert to full-time employees because they like the diversity of different jobs.
This all translates into benefits for the entrepreneur who needs help but can't hire full-time employees. The employment gurus don't expect this part-time preference to pass anytime soon. It seems that the appeal of a reduced schedule is strong both for seniors and baby boomers nearing retirement. Parents who have interrupted careers to care for their children but still want to work may also explain the boom.
Entrepreneurs should eagerly look to this pool of workers and eagerly employ part-time help. A big reason is that employer-paid health insurance and other benefits add costs equal to more than 50 percent of the average employee's gross earnings. A part-time employer can get by with a low-cost factor, and still find somebody reliable and efficient.
Looking at the boom of part-timers seems like a win-win situation for entrepreneurs and workers alike. Check the prospect out with your accountant and you may find that you come out a winner and less stressed.
So let's look at how you can moonlight your way to a writing career, and make more money than you're making now.
"Moonlighting" means taking a second job to supplement your day job's income. Many writers moonlight, and then go full time when they're ready. You can speed up this process, with the following four tips.
1. Writing full time is a decision - make the decision now
You can make the transition to a full time writing career from moonlighting if you decide that that's what you want to do, and make plans to achieve that goal.
When planning the transition, here's what you will need before you quit your day job:
* Savings - aim to have a cushion of several months' income;
* An "anchor" client.
You'll need to have some savings. Save up the income you make from moonlighting until you've saved the equivalent of six months' salary. This gives you a cushion and some security. You may become ill, or a family member may become ill, so having savings is essential.
You also need an an "anchor" client. This is a client who pays you enough to pay your rent or mortgage. Having an anchor client who pays you regularly means that your most pressing bills will be paid, even if other clients pay you slowly. You may have several clients who buy from you each month, and who make up that anchor client role.
2. Make time to write - get up an hour earlier
The easiest way to get your writing done when you're moonlighting is to get up an hour earlier, and write then. You're fresh, your mind is uncluttered by the stresses and strains of the day.
The danger of waiting to write until your working day is done, is that you may never get to your writing. When you're tired, you'll give in to the seduction of the TV, or the demands of others in your household.
Write first.
3. Your career is just words away - making contact with the people who can buy your writing
When you're writing as a hobby, finding buyers for your writing can be approached haphazardly. However, when you're moonlighting, making writing your full time career depends on how quickly you can both write, and find buyers for your writing.
Therefore, make marketing your writing a task you do every day. If you only have an hour a day to moonlight, spend half an hour writing, and the other half hour sending your writing to the people who can buy your writing.
4. Starting out is hard: it gets easier
Keep a writing log. Write down how much time you've spent writing, what you wrote, and what you've sent out to editors and clients. Your writing log is important, because you can look back at your log, and see that you're making progress, even when nothing seems to be happening.
When you start selling your writing, it will take three to six months before you're selling consistently. Because your progress seems slow, it's easy to lose motivation. So enter everything you do into your log: it will motivate you until sales provide their own motivation.
Both Trafficwala & Angela Booth are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Trafficwala has sinced written about articles on various topics from Network Marketing, Fitness and Astrology Predictions. Ashok Arora providing , and. Trafficwala's top article generates over 18100 views. to your Favourites.
Angela Booth has sinced written about articles on various topics from Article Writing, About Branding and Copywriting. Discover how easy it is to with Angela Booth's "Sell Your Writing Online NOW" Training Program. The program is fun and profitable too. For free weekly. Angela Booth's top article generates over 33100 views. to your Favourites.