7 What if…?s What does Freedom day mean to you?
Freedom Day - England - Back to the workplace…or not?
Freedom Day in England dawned and for most there was no discernible difference between today and last Monday. As the rest of the UK gradually gets back on with life as we knew it, there are those that have reservations and objections about going back to the way things were.
I guess you’re reading this because you’ve found yourself taking stock, adding up and working out what you are going to do with the rest of your life? You have put yourself in a corner, into trying to make a decision about your future work-life.
OK maybe it’s not quite as blunt as that but as the great release from lockdown unfurls it’s wings, and the world returns to some sort of normal, research has shown that up to 60% of people who have been working from home will resign if they have to return to the office.
I read an article in the Telegraph that described the mass exodus of 30 somethings from offices and workplaces across the globe. As I read on, it became abundantly clear that the interviewee was easily positioned to make the leap, with a large wallet to cushion the blow. Massive fist bump to her!
What she described was the feeling of taking control of her life.
You are probably not in such a comfortable position from which to take the leap, I know I wasn’t when I made my choice. But, that’s exactly what many of us have been looking to do, for a long time, and the pandemic brought it closer to a reality.
As lockdown commenced, there was a band of merry persons that were crying out that we were losing our freedom. A more subtle crowd were waking up, stretching, taking a deep breath and smelling the sweet scent of life. Literally, waking up, not rushing and crashing about to find the right suit, the right shoes, make lunch, find the car keys, get the kids ready, do their homework (!!!)
So many people went into therapeutic retreat and didn’t even notice.
They weren’t living by someone else’s clock; they were re-setting their own. The massive change of routine carried with it a realisation that battling rush hour was pointless, stressful and expensive. City dressing was for City impressing; not for working in. The CEOs with their heads screwed on realised that they had a contented workforce, that were productive and collaborative; thanks to the likes of Zoom (other video conferencing platforms are available.) There was an upsurge in garden shed sales as people created their work haven in the back garden. People got very inventive with the space under the stairs and realised it worked, very well thank you!
I’ve been in contact with people who despite having several children running through their newly proclaimed workspace, they were less stressed than when they were trying to make the school run and the board meeting with barely a breath to spare in between.
What many of them said was that they were able to stop work and sort the kids, got to play with the kids, got to know their kids. They didn’t need a 9-5 routine with a couple of breaks to be as productive, if not more so, than they were in the office. They adjusted their work-day so that it suited them and their family, and still got the job done.
There is the 5am club, the 8am club, the 11am club (made up names but you get the idea?) Each starting their day when it suited them. What’s wrong with a 2 hour lunch break in the garden if they started at 7am and finished that portfolio that was needed? Who cares if they were on their 3rd latte by 9.30 and are eating hot toast as they scribbled and created away on Photoshop? They went for walks, and they stopped and thought…
So what now?
CARPE DIEM!
It’s Freedom day! (or it was when I started writing this)
This is the time to think purposefully about what you want to do.
It’s been over a year since this shift of values began rolling our lives like pebbles on the edge of the beach. We’ve been tumbled and crashed, over and over. We’ve got chipped and bits of us have been smashed away by the tide. Black dogs have run across us but we somehow managed to leash them, or calm them. Some sides of us are smoother and more polished, some are a little jagged. We have changed. The world has changed.
This is a turning point-in your life. If you think you are the only one to be stuck with this momentous decision to make, believe me when I say, you are very much not alone!
I don’t want to spoil the poetic drama of the moment with practicalities because, because…
Oh f@@k it, here goes, the spoiler, no poetic licence, just some well worn advice.
The practicalities are money and opportunity. I wish I could just get back to the pebbles on the beach bit!
Only you can judge your boundaries, limitations, needs, wants, money and opportunity; just make sure you look at them properly.
Ask yourself some what if…?s. not all obstacles insurmountable.
What if I gave up my job?
What if I don’t know where to find the opportunities?
What if I made my hobby my business?
What if I went freelance?
What if I transferred my skills?
What if I took my 3…4…7…99, ideas and ran with them all?
What if I saved money on childcare because I’m at home?
So, you’ve done your ‘What if...’s
I hope it was helpful. If you’ve come to the conclusion that you’re going to throw in the towel with the rat race and enjoy the life of a pebble on the beach there is a lot of practical support out there. Networking groups, business support groups, freelancer groups all there with a few clicks on Google, or Facebook.
If you’re going freelance get yourself a website.
When I went freelance, that was the best bit of advice I had. It adds credibility to your business.
Who is going to invest their money on someone who isn’t invested enough in their business to move off a free social media page?
Get a website.
There is something out there for all budgets, shop around.
Get on social media.
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram.
I know I just said move off, but what I meant was don’t make it the hub of your business, it’s an add-on— a quiet sidekick that boosts your visibility and YOU NEED TO BE VISIBLE. All these platform work differently for different businesses.
Experiment, then focus on those that prove most effective.
The visibility thing is a biggie!
Network
This was the second, best bit f advice I was given. Networking has a bit of a corporate image to those who haven’t joined in the fun yet. Choose carefully, most groups will charge a membership fee but not all give value for your money. I don’t just mean value in money I mean in support, friendship and being able to socialise (virtually most of the time!)
Enjoy the journey
You will probably learn something new every day if you haven’t worked for yourself before. If you are changing your career entirely, it’s a given that you will make mistakes but you will learn from them.
Remember this is your journey
You are in control now. If there are bits you don’t like or aren’t confident about , don’t do them!
I took on an accountant because there is no way I want to be responsible for all those numbers, I’m a words girl…and pictures! There are freelancers out there who can do all those things for you, that’s where the networking really helps!
I did my own website because I can.
I defined my own brand, because I can.
I write my own content, because I can.
I manage my own SEO, because I can.
I got an accountant, because I can’t.
If you want any help with any of that, I’m happy to have a chat, just don’t ask me about your accounts though, I will mess that up for sure!
If you want me to direct you to a great networking group I can do that. If you want to pick my brains about any of the things I’ve written about today just drop me a message with when you are free and I can set up a FREE 30 minute Zoom call with you. Or you can just email — like the old days!
