My work life is unrecognisable. I wanted to take a moment to appreciate just how different things are, compared to this time last year.
In April 2023 I was working in an office most days, part of a communications team: attending meetings, staring into a laptop, anxious about sending high-pressure all staff emails and creating engagement campaigns for a workforce so bruised by a recent redundancy process that they really didn’t care what kind of freebies or wellbeing opportunities we were offering. I didn’t know that in less than a month I’d be handing in my staff badge and erasing my to-do list with an overwhelming sense of relief that I also I didn’t expect.
Fast forward to April 2024, and I’m now juggling a part-time job with a number of freelance roles and projects. In my job I get to really engage with people: meeting new groups, talking about nature and climate, contributing to the local community. I feel I can also call myself a writer now, as I’m getting regular commissions, scribbling on Substack and making more content than ever, which is satisfying my curiosity and creative urges - perhaps because it’s mine. Even when I’m writing a feature commissioned for a magazine or newspaper, it’s usually because I’ve chosen or initiated it, and I’m writing about a topic which I’m deeply interested in, rather than one foisted upon me on the whim of a manager.
I’m also getting outside more - which was and still is a goal of mine as I’m crafting this new work life. I have had a lot more freedom in the past year to work where and when I want - and that’s meant I can incorporate time in my own garden or those where I’m a volunteer. Most significantly, I’ve also launched my new gardening business, offering maintenance and advice locally alongside running my little micro-nursery. It’s something that has been a daydream for a long time; I’ve stared out many office windows wondering if I could ever make it a reality. I’m still wondering, as it’s so new and experimental - but at last I’m giving it a go.
It’s a varied palette of work, and it’s a juggle, especially at the moment when roles and opportunities are new and need some effort to get them up and running. And I’d be lying if I said I haven’t been tempted in the past year to go back to a steady 9-5 office job. But I have changed significantly too in that time. I’m thinking differently, discovering more about myself and what I want from life; what I’m prepared to compromise on and what is non-negotiable. It’s a cliché, but it really has been a steep learning curve. However it’s a journey I needed to make, though I didn’t choose it, welcome it, or even enjoy it very much for a lot of the time!
I chose ‘Cultivar’ as the name of my garden-themed Substack because I love the idea of cultivating variety. I enjoy discovering and acquiring different cultivars (ie varieties) of plants I like to grow; but I’m also enjoying creating variety in life. Cobbling together all the different skills I have into a jack-of-all-trades, multi-hyphenate, portfolio type of career is opening up new opportunities I just didn’t think would be possible or would come my way. I’m still occasionally tempted by ‘proper’ jobs with clearer boundaries and a much bigger salary… but I just can’t give up this new life. It’s becoming enjoyable at last. It may not be what I’m meant to do forever and ever, amen - but it’s what I’m meant to do now, and that’s good enough.
Sounds like you are creating a lovely life! 🍃