What can you do to succeed in caring
One of my favourite mottos is that ‘there has never been a better time to be in business’, which couldn’t be truer for self-employed care workers. So as a self-employed provider, here are three top tips to give you the competitive edge.
The implementation of the NDIS has opened up the concept of choice to participants across the country. We are still in the very early stages of the roll-out but already people are starting to get a handle on what that choice means and how they can use it to get the best care for them.
As the NDIS continues to be rolled out, the demand for good quality care workers is on the rise. So, as a self-employed care worker, what can you do to attract more clients and build your business with confidence?
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Organise your business
Yes, being self-employed means you are running a business and it is your responsibility to make sure it runs well.
Unfortunately, sole traders and the self-employed in Australia have the highest exit rates of all businesses. In my experience, this regularly comes back to inadequate business organisation and no systems.
When I talk about organisation, I mean keeping on top of your cash flow by monitoring what is coming in and what is going out. Using a system to collate and control invoices, quotes and receipts. Finally, remember that what you get paid is not your take home income. It is important to factor in costs such as insurance, tax, motor vehicle and other expenses before you take money out of the business.
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Build your profile
Your profile is the expression of you that people will see when they go looking or researching you and your business. Nowadays, this is most commonly done online and whether you like it or not, you already have an online profile.
The key here is to make sure that you and your business show up online in the right way. When a person is deciding whether you are the right person to provide their care, they will want to get to know you to build trust and credibility. Building your profile is all about telling your story in your words and making it easy for people to find and connect with you.
There are two very simple ways you can start to tell your story and show up today with an online profile that gets noticed. Take advantage of the online social media that is already built to help you communicate your message. Platforms such as facebook, linkedin, google+, Instagram and many more allow you to create either a personal and/or business page. Best of all these platforms are already optimised for online searches and they are free to use.
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Create a reputation
In the world of providing care, people open up their homes and their lives to the carers who look after them. Building a reputation is as much about communication as it is about your values.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s important to have values and to follow through on your values. But communication is about making sure that others around you understand what your values are. When people know who you are, what you do and what your expectations are, then they have confidence in telling others about you.
Firstly, you need to decide on the reputation you are trying to build and write it down to remind yourself. Secondly, develop a way of communicating your reputation to those around you. This might mean holding a meeting with prospective clients to go through who you are, what you do or don’t do and what your expectations are.
Once you have communicated your reputation it will set the benchmark for people to understand you and be confident in you.
Written By Patrick Harrison
