⏱ 2 min reading
When you’re employed by someone and do your best at work, chances are you will get a promotion at some time. Perhaps this comes with more responsibility, but it’ll also come with an increase in income. This is determined by the function and the fact that your boss gave you a promotion. But when you own a business yourself and work hard, when do you know what’s the good time to give yourself a raise? Since you’re your own boss, you will be the only person who can determine that. But this can be daunting, especially since you never know what the future holds. What’ll happen if income into your business suddenly falls? There are a couple of things you could look into which will help you determine whether or not you can give yourself a raise.
1. Your annual income
When it’s December, you often have a better idea of your average monthly income than looking at each month individually. Some months you may have an exceptionally higher income than others. Looking at your annual income means that it’ll be easier to see if you’ve been earning more. When you see an increase over the years and you can also say with certainty that you’re expenses haven’t gone up considerably, this can be a sign that you could increase your own income.
2. Estimations for the upcoming year
Rather than looking to the past and how you’ve performed, you can also look into the future a bit more. However, because this hasn’t happened yet, it can be more tricky than looking at your annual income (which therefore it would be good to look into all of these steps and not just go by one). Because it’s your own business, you will know the projects you’ll take on or which clients you anticipate will make recurring purchases. Therefore, it can be easier to estimate what you’re earning for a new year. But also take into account that there will always be things you can’t foresee and that one client you had high hopes for suddenly backs out.
3. Know where your money goes
When it comes to monthly expenses, such as rent for your apartment you will know exactly how much you’ll spend. You can do this for all the set expenses you will have and which will not change suddenly. Once you know the amount, everything that’s left are things you can use for enriching your life.
4. Get creative
If I hear you thinking – But I’m not a creative person – stop! Every person is creative, and the fact that you own your own business for sure means you’re creative. If you think of new ways to be more profitable with your business, this could also increase your income. Maybe think of doing some other projects than the ones you’ve been doing, or set really unrealistic goals which will force you to think of new ways to earn more money.
Hopefully, these four indicators will help you determine whether or not you can give yourself a raise. Lastly, even though the idea of more money might seem very appealing, the moment is not always good for it so also know when the signs are not there and you shouldn’t give yourself a raise yet.
