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Self-employed vs owner

The differences between self-employeds and owners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a self-employed, becoming an owner takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, an owner has an average salary of $90,334, which is higher than the $34,734 average annual salary of a self-employed.

The top three skills for a self-employed include windows, mowing and customer service. The most important skills for an owner are customer service, payroll, and financial statements.

Self-employed vs owner overview

Self-EmployedOwner
Yearly salary$34,734$90,334
Hourly rate$16.70$43.43
Growth rate8%6%
Number of jobs6,21586,486
Job satisfaction5-
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 38%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age4152
Years of experience6-

What does a self-employed do?

A self-employed person works without the supervision of a specific employer. Self-employed entrepreneurs decide their business plans to increase profitability and get involved with the current market trends. They also attend business orientations to improve their skills and strategies on driving their business' growth. A self-employed person must display exceptional decision-making and organizational skills to implement strategies, provide the best customer service with the clients, address their needs, manage complaints, and respond to the customer's inquiries.

What does an owner do?

Owners, in the most basic sense, own the business, company, or organization. They are responsible for building the business. They create business plans and the general vision and mission of the company, set goals, work on these goals, and ensure that the business keeps running. They manage all aspects of their business, from finances to marketing to people, etc. When the business becomes stable, owners eventually hire more employees. As such, owners also become overseers who would ensure that the organization remains afloat.

Self-employed vs owner salary

Self-employeds and owners have different pay scales, as shown below.

Self-EmployedOwner
Average salary$34,734$90,334
Salary rangeBetween $27,000 And $44,000Between $60,000 And $135,000
Highest paying City-New York, NY
Highest paying state-New Jersey
Best paying company-BP America Inc
Best paying industry--

Differences between self-employed and owner education

There are a few differences between a self-employed and an owner in terms of educational background:

Self-EmployedOwner
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 38%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Self-employed vs owner demographics

Here are the differences between self-employeds' and owners' demographics:

Self-EmployedOwner
Average age4152
Gender ratioMale, 60.8% Female, 39.2%Male, 63.1% Female, 36.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.1% Asian, 7.3% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 7.5% White, 76.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage9%12%

Differences between self-employed and owner duties and responsibilities

Self-employed example responsibilities.

  • Develop and manage the in-store informational PowerPoint presentations that run on multiple televisions to answer questions and provide information to customers.
  • Generate monthly, quarterly and yearly sales reports, correspondence, & PowerPoint presentations.
  • Complete jobs (lawn mowing, lawn cleaning, edging, trimmings bushes and trees) any aspect of lawn care.
  • Work with traditional video cameras and DSLR cameras.
  • Develop a website and Facebook page to increase networking.
  • Equip with a full-frame Nikon D600 and multiple lenses.
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Owner example responsibilities.

  • Manage web content and a PHP / MySQL application.
  • Create and develop a website to help clients easily manage their instagram account to gain exposure.
  • Execute all social media marketing and manage the company Facebook page/campaigns.
  • Manage human resource functions by generating payroll, scheduling and upholding company policies.
  • License Maryland home improvement contractor managing a small home improvement business that specializes in doors and windows.
  • Manage end to end business operations including hiring, scheduling visits, conducting customer consultations and performing pet visits.
  • Show more

Self-employed vs owner skills

Common self-employed skills
  • Windows, 15%
  • Mowing, 14%
  • Customer Service, 13%
  • Financial Statements, 13%
  • Payroll, 8%
  • Real Estate, 7%
Common owner skills
  • Customer Service, 25%
  • Payroll, 17%
  • Financial Statements, 8%
  • Product Development, 7%
  • Real Estate, 3%
  • Business Development, 3%

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