Structural Tips
Hire a professional accountant to ensure you've properly set up your incorporation
- Keep detailed records
- File proper tax returns
- Set-up a separate business banking account.
- Maintain appropriate expenses
- Determine in advance what is billable to your client and what will be considered a business expense
- Keep mileage logs, as well as any home office bills
- Determine legitimate business expenses, such as your website, marketing costs, etc.
- Risk of loss is a key differentiator
- Is there risk of loss in your contract with your staffing agency?
- Maintain your own business E&O insurance (talk to Eagle about how to acquire this insurance for $21.00 per month)
- Leverage opportunities for more profit through more hours
- Discourage your agency, or client, from mandating your hours of operation at a client site
- Avoid numbered companies and name your corporation.
Behavioural Tips
- Act like a business, not an employee
- Avoid the 9 to 5 workday -- vary your hours at a client site.
- Avoid politics and people issues at a client site
- Don't partake in the water-cooler chatter
- If something, or someone, is in the way of completing your mandate, focus on the issue, not the person
- Don't expect to attend your client's social gatherings or events such as the annual holiday party. If you do participate, pay to attend and use the opportunity to network
- Take on additional contracts with multiple clients, even if only part-time
- Invest in regularly upgrading your skills through training activities paid by your incorporated business.
- Bring your own tools to a client site -- laptop, office supplies, etc.
- Maintain a company internet profile.
- Website
- LinkedIn company page
- Facebook company page
- Corporate Twitter account
- Advertise
- Maintain your own business cards
- Maintain a listing in various directories (i.e. Yellow Pages)
- Consider sponsorship advertising opportunities
