Flexible working
For last six months or so I’ve been banging the drum about #flexibleworking… mainly because I’m passionate about it…but also because…
…I need it – to pay my bills!
…I enjoy it – to (just about) balance a job with looking after a young family.
…I believe in it – it’s the future, and not just for parents – but for anyone looking to inject a bit more #worklifebalance into their days.
My campaign
My local social media campaign ‘Flexible Works Surrey’ has been about encouraging Surrey employers to think more flexibly and create more part-time and flexible jobs for the many talented individuals out there needing, if not craving, a bit of flexibility in their working lives.
The campaign has been fun – I’ve connected with lots of interesting people; been inspired by stories of flexible working really working; found my local coworking community; built up a Twitter following from zero to over 350; run my first “tweet chat” (who knew?!); and even broke my own privacy boundaries and posted using Facebook Live!
In training for a new career
But, apart from a passion for flexible working, why start the campaign? Well for those who haven’t already guessed, I’ve been training up to be a Freelance Social Media Manager – so that I too could carve out my own little piece of flexible working freedom.
My background is mainly Occupational Psychology – mostly spent carrying out research and consultancy around organisational safety issues – sometimes in far-flung places. This has been an amazing experience and one I feel hugely grateful for – but I simply don’t know – and don’t want to know – how you juggle international travel and long hours with caring for three young children.
Social Media Management as a flexible career promises great things – you don’t need to be in any fixed location to do your job well – with a smart device and robust WiFi you can deliver a quality service. Of course – please don’t misunderstand me – powerful strategic social media management requires considerable time and creative energy – but in terms of a physical location and being fixed to certain times of day – there’s just not the same need as with more traditional office jobs.
I also don’t need to tell anyone reading this that social media is the future – everyone wants, if not needs to be ‘social’ these days to keep their brand current and ensure they can reach out and connect with existing and future customers. Any business without a social media presence is taking a risk.
A rebrand
So… my FlexibleWorks Surrey campaign is going through a re-brand… that’s right, a new logo, a website, and more on #socialmedia strategy and tactics… but I’ll still be supporting flexible working… because it’s something I feel passionately about. I just want to slightly alter the campaign’s direction and actually walk the flexible talk. And I’d love you to join me on the journey.
I want to consider…
- Is it really possible to set up a business that allows you to work flexibly?
- Is self-employment really all it’s cracked up to be?
- How should you brand yourself?
- How will you find customers?
- How do you make the isolation of ‘working from home’ bearable?
- And most importantly… will you make enough money to cover your bills?
By exploring these issues, I hope to help myself… and anyone else that’s trying to set up their own business… in whatever format that may take! I hope you stick with me as I explore in real time creating work that works…
And of course, if you’re still reading this, liked my Flexible Works Surrey campaign and would like me to help you build your brand on social media… I’d love to hear from you! Nudge-nudge wink-wink.
About Catchfly
Catchfly is a social media management agency specialising in helping businesses engage with other businesses. We want to help your business thrive through the strategic and effective use of social media.
Backed by 20 years’ experience helping businesses to understand and communicate with their key stakeholders, Catchfly will help you with everything from devising a social media strategy through to the practicalities of posting news and updates across your social media platforms. We can also help create and curate your social media content, ensuring your business has a rich supply of engaging news, research and commentary to share with your audience.
We’d love to hear from you – so please drop us a line at natasha_perry11@hotmail.com so we can discuss your specific social media needs.
FlexibleWorks Surrey 