We’re giving you guys a peek behind the curtain at some of the tools available to our users. Visit CMI Interactive’s sign up page to take advantage of these medical freelancing tools.

When you log in you are presented with a grid of options on our control panel. Features include our rate calculator, links to our book store, and links to our information sections for business coaching, financial advising, and internet marketing.

Jobs and Contract Opportunities

Our users want to know about the latest contracts and job opportunities and we offer a constantly updating list of openings all over the United States. Each posting lists the job title, location, date posted, and type of opening.

Book Store

Our CMI Interactive Book Store are recommendations specifically chosen for CMI Interactive by our Legal author. Interested in a purchase? Simply click through to buy from Amazon.

Rate Calculator

The rate calculator is a valuable tool that takes your hourly rate and a projected number of hours of work, subtracts common expenses like federal taxes, insurance, and typical business expenses, and presents you with a annual or monthly bring home amount.

Business Experts

As part of our exclusive partnership with experts in business coaching, executive recruitment, financial advising, legal, tax planning, and web marketing we offer articles that answer frequently asked questions. We even give contact information so you can reach out to our experts directly.

Sound useful? Visit CMI Interactive to sign up.

You can also follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or Friendfeed for more tips and info about medical freelancing.

Part of that reality is that you must be responsible for your own tax withholdings. For those that are changing over from a employee to being self-employed, you must set aside about 30% of each check that you deposit, because at the end of the year you will owe Uncle Sam his due.

If that’s news to you then read on, because while being a freelancer is a great way to make money, your new freedom brings great responsibility. Here’s a short list of tips about taxes for the self-employed.

1. Report all income to the IRS no matter the amount or form in which it is received. Big brother government might miss a few items every now and then, but it’s not worth putting your business at stake. Be straight forward about your income and you won’t have anything to worry about on April 15th.

2. If you work from home, there are several business related expenses that are deductible as long as they are ordinary and necessary to your job. For example, you can deduct internet connections, common office supplies, business cards, cell phone fees, computer software and hardware.

3. Another benefit of having a home office is that you can deduct a percentage of utilities, insurance, and a part of the mortgage or rent. But don’t get too carried away, the space must be specifically set aside as an office workspace. Though you may spend a lot of time in your kitchen while on business calls, your new blender is not a business expense.

Let’s get this straight, this is a blog, not a CPA. So you’ll need more help than we can list in a blog post. If you want to manage your business the right way there’s only one thing you’ll need to succeed, KNOWLEDGE! With the right tools you can be a successful business owner. We recommend the professional freelancing tools over at CMI Interactive.

Competing against bloated businesses with big brands and fat marketing budgets can be intimidating, but there are ways for independent contractors to stand out. That first impression is always key to setting the standard for the quality of your work.

It doesn’t take a large budget to show your clients that you have the same tools, structure, and knowledge as the larger businesses.

Don’t send a client an estimate you threw together using Word or Excel. That’s so 2003. Instead make use of online invoicing and book keeping tools. Just about every site offers some kind of free demo and the starter package is typically very cheap.

With an online invoicing tool you can send professional estimates, track timesheets, manage expenses, manage billing, and collaborate with other people you are working with.

Here’s a list of some of the more popular online invoicing sites:
- Freshbooks
- Harvest
- ZOHO Invoice
- Blinksale
- SimplyInvoices

Having the right tools is the only difference between you (the freelancer) and them (the big brand). You don’t have to be an expert accountant to manage your finances. With tools from business mentoring companies like CMI Interactive you can get expert advice from business advisors. And you don’t have to be a news junkie to stay on top of the latest news in the healthcare industry. With CMI Interactive’s news feeds for the sciences and health field you can stay up-to-date on the biotech, healthcare, medical device, and pharmaceuticals industry.

For the independent professionals in the medical industry you should check out the professional tools over at CMI Interactive.

For example, take a look at the difference between the national unemployment rate (the dark blue line) and the unemployment rate of all men and women ages 25 to 44 with a college degree (the light red line).

That unemployment rate is only 4.5%, while the high school graduate unemployment rate is 9.1%, which is higher than the national unemployment average of 8.6%. And of course it’s no surprise that those without a high school level education is extremely high at 17.5% (pictured below).

No high school education

However, the three-month average job-loss trend is actually improving. Take a look at the chart below that shows the slowly improving job loss rate. Each month the loss of jobs is getting less and less.

We show you trends like this to let you know that there are lots of jobs out there and each month more and more people are becoming employed. Don’t let negative press about the unemployment percentage frustrate your job search or freelancing efforts. The job and contract market is still very strong and it is continuing to improve!

CMI Interactive professional business tools for medical professionals.

As an example of ways to stay informed about current issues in the health care industry, we highly recommend a recent broadcast from the radio show This American Life. In it they discuss the American health care system’s costs and why they continue to rise.

Episode #391: More Is Less (10-9-2009)

An hour explaining the American health care system, specifically, why it is that costs keep rising. One story looks at the doctors, one at the patients and one at the insurance industry.
Here’s a 30 second preview of the episode

Episode #392: Someone Else’s Money (10-16-09)

This week, we bring you a deeper look inside the health insurance industry. The dark side of prescription drug coupons. A story about Pet Health Insurance, which is in its infancy, and how it is changing human behaviors—for example, if you have the pet health insurance, you bring your pet to the vet more often, and the vet makes more money and…well, you can see the parallels. And insurance company jargon, frighteningly decoded.
Here’s a 30 second preview of the episode

How often are the pages updated?
Every month offers several new articles of interest, links, or download files. If you have a specific question, please send us feedback. Our authors also post responses to frequently asked questions.

I’m new to Independent Contracting. What do I do first?
CMI Interactive.com covers the bases. Research each step with help from the Small Business Tool pages.
Step One: Set up your small business. Step Two: Find a contract. Step Three: Manage your money. (Does this seem like a lot of work? Consider outsourcing some or all.) Step Four: Consider an agent. Register today to view more details and professional advice!

Should I incorporate?
While numerous entity structures exist, many independent contractors select a corporate structure. Single member LLCs are also a popular choice. In most cases, corporations may provide a veil of personal asset protection, deductibility of insurance premiums, and solo or multiple shareholder options. However, corporations may also be subject to franchise taxing, reporting requirements, and corporate documentation. The list is lengthy. Always check with your attorney or state’s Business Corporation Act for specifics. You can find Secretary of State Office links listed within our Legal page. Register today for access to Independent Contractor Small Business Tools!

What is the subscription fee?
A nominal subscription fee gains you access to all three areas: Small Business Tools, Industry News, and Continuing Education. Newcomers and seasoned professionals alike benefit from resources not found anywhere else! The tax deductible rate is a simple $14.99 per month. Of course, our online payment system is secure and backed by Authorize.net. See our Registration page for more details.

What will I see in the Small Business Tools section?
The basic flow includes an article of interest, archive of articles, downloadable files, links, and author recommendations to name a few. Other pages such as the bill rate calculator change up the scene, offering more interaction.

Who writes the small business pages?
The pages are authored by professionals within their respective industries. For example, an attorney provides the legal information, a certified public accountant offers tax links, and a financial advisor presents life planning. Biographies and photographs are posted by the authors. Impressed by their advice? Contact them via links to their e-mail accounts and corporate web pages.

Where do the job links come from?
ConsignMed is our exclusive job link provider. You will only see the freshest, highest paying contract opportunities around. They work with the top medical device and pharmaceutical companies in the world. Experience their award winning service through our links.

Click here to see the full list of frequently asked questions.

The biggest pitfalls of starting a business is in the marketing and administration of your company. For example, part of your roles as a new business owner is in planning and management of your finances.

A great way to investigate and plan your company’s money is to use a billing rate calculator to gage your income and expenses.

Start with income based on your hourly rate and projected number of working hours on an annual basis. From there you will be able to see see your gross income and your adjusted gross income based on expenses including things like taxes, insurance, and office expenses.

There are several online tool available, but we recommend the CMI Interactive Billing Rate Calculator that comes with your small business tools package. It’s a great way for independent contractors to gain the knowledge they need to stay out of that 33% of failing new businesses.

Learn more at CMI Interactive

Hello and welcome to the new CMI Interactive blog! We’ve established this blog as a way to communicate our knowledge about how to be successful in the science and medical industry. This is not a sales pitch, rather it’s a platform for us to help guide independent science professionals with helpful information to launch their small business.

Our blog is designed for the purpose of guiding independent medical contractors with helpful information about the healthcare industry. Our interest in developing this blog stemmed from the concerns and questions frequently voiced by our independent contractors. We have identified several key areas of interest, such as entity formation, income tax payments, and retirement planning.

We’ll also be discussing topics like the difference between degrees and certifications, tips on how to find job and how to secure contracts, and frequently asked questions about freelancing such as telecommuting and home office ideas.

To make this discussion as valuable as possible we want your feedback. Feel free to leave us a comment right here on our blog, follow us on Facebook, Friendfeed, Twitter, or subscribe to our blog using RSS or email. You can also contact us using the form on our blog contact page.

Visit CMI Interactive for more information about support for independent professionals in the medical industry.