4 Things You Need to Protect Your Retirement Side Hustle

Having a side hustle throughout your retirement is a fantastic option to increase your income, however, there are a few things you need to get in line to make sure that it is protected.

Most of these things are simply quick fixes that are definitely worth doing to future-proof your side hustle. Invest some time and a small amount of money now and you will reap the benefits in the future.

Choose A Legal Structure

Although you might have already done this, we must mention it to start with. You need to make sure that you have associated your business with one of three legal structures; a sole trader, partnership, or limited company. 

If you haven’t, you might face issues later down the line, so getting this right if you haven’t already is important.

When you register yourself as self-employed, you will automatically become a sole trader. If you face any debts, this does mean you are responsible and your personal assets could be at risk if you can’t pay them. 

Another option if you have joint ownership with someone else is to register as a partnership. There are different types of partnerships depending on your business, some with fewer obligations than others.

Finally, you can set up a limited company, where your personal assets are separate from the business assets. This is a big advantage, but there are many more legal obligations involved that you need to learn about. 

If you are unsure, there are so many different guides online or you can discuss this with a business advisor to make sure you are making the right choice.

Protecting Your Intellectual Property

If you have developed a new product, service, or brand for your side hustle, it is important that you protect it by trademarking your intellectual property. 

This could be anything that you have created, from brand names to new technology, products, or symbols. Not only will this make sure that you protect your own business and ideas from being ripped off by other people, but you will also make sure that you’re not infringing on other people’s businesses so you don’t face any legal issues later down the line. 

Even if your business only generates a small amount of your income, this is a really important step regardless to future proof the business.

Have The Right Insurance

Every business should have some kind of insurance, and if you don’t, you might find that you come to regret the decision later down the line. 

It is best to work with a broker for this, to make sure that you find the right insurance depending on your specific side hustle. If you work on a credit basis for your side hustle, you might need whole turnover insurance if your business is particularly high risk. 

Perhaps for your specific business, you will need property insurance, liability insurance, workers compensation insurance, the list goes on!

The best piece of advice we can give you is to go to a broker and they will be able to assist you with getting the right cover for your business at the right price.

Make Sure You’re Paying The Right Tax

No matter how big or small your side hustle is, you need to report your earnings to the government. This income will be classed as self-employed income, so it is important you report anything to the HMRC or another relevant governing body. 

Tax is a very complex thing to get your head around, so it is always worth contacting a professional accountant to make sure you aren’t paying too much or too little tax. 

This will make sure that your business isn’t hit with any huge and unexpected tax bills in the future!

Final Thoughts

If you invest in these things now, it will certainly be worth it in the future. Protect your retirement side hustle and your future!

Running a Profitable Side Hustle As You Are Aging

The side hustle has become much more popular as many people in all demographics understand the chance to make money online. Those with specific skills can start earning nearly immediately in the cases of virtual assistants, content writers, and web designers. 

A side hustle can be extremely stressful for a person who is starting to feel their age more and more daily. The side hustle is not a main source of income which can help reduce the stress with many older people just wanting something to do with their free time. 

The following are tips to help run a profitable side hustle while keeping your age in mind.

Decide How Much You Are Willing To Work

A side hustle will help you fill the time but you have to decide how much you are willing to work. Those who are a bit older might be technically retired or partially retired. An important detail to look up is how much money can be made before it impacts social security benefits. 

Once you have reached this cap then working could take away your monthly check until you are under the required income. Once you have set a cap on how much you can earn and want to work then a game plan can be written out. 




Hiring other freelancers to complete work is also an option while taking a little bit off of the top. Managing people is different work than writing an article but it can be just as profitable. 

While you might not be able to write 100 articles in a week, you can edit these then submit all of them. Your profit per article is not going to be as high but the number of articles should take care of that.

Expand Client Base Consistently

Freelancers need to constantly expand their client base as clients disappear or simply do not need work completed during certain times of the year. The expansion of the client base will also give a freelancer the ability to choose the easiest and best paying clients they want to work with. 

Freelancer platforms like that of Upwork do take a percentage for bringing the client and freelancer together but it protects both parties in the case of low quality, incomplete work, and failure to pay/refund. 

Taking less money than you think your work is worth might have to be done to establish a high rating on these platforms. Once your profile is established prices for services and work can be increased incrementally. 

Clients are also willing to pay freelancers they work with consistently a bit more as they know their quality of work.

Keep Your Overhead Low

The best thing about working online to supplement income is that internet is reasonably priced. A computer or even tablet with a keyboard attached can help you start earning quickly. 

One mistake that people make is thinking they need a large office so they can concentrate on their work. A virtual office is a much better option as it is more affordable but it also comes with the perks of an office. 

A live receptionist as well as business address comes with the virtual office package. The ability to rent out offices and meeting spaces can allow a side hustler to bring clients to pitch or simply meet with.

Take the time to write out expenses and the ROI each of these expenses bring back in terms of revenue. This will allow you to truly see where the money it going and where the money turns into more profit. 

Keep in mind that business expenses can be written off come tax time so this will provide a little financial relief when it comes to overhead.

Constantly Find Ways To Optimize Work Flow

Working for yourself can allow the freedom to tweak processes to see what works best. Increasing productivity even by 10 percent can lead to that percentage resulting in complete profits. 

A great productivity tip that many professionals in general can benefit from is limiting the checking of email. While client emails are important, they can be answered at the rate of once an hour without issue. This gives a freelancer the ability to keep their train of thought without being derailed by a pushy or angry client. 

Check email once an hour and do the appropriate replying then jump back into your work. This gives clients the ability to email back and forth numerous times in a day without impacting productivity to a very large extent.

Building a decent side hustle as you age can allow for more financial freedom than you have had in the past. In even better cases this extra income can allow you to retire early. Side hustles are here to stay, find one you can profit from today!