A proper job?

Being self-employed can be a strange existence. Team meetings are pretty non-existent, there’s no-one at the kettle to moan to about your workload, and the Christmas do can be a little quiet. But it can also provide you with a completely new lease of life, particularly if you are - like me - a fairly ambitious, determined and headstrong mother of two.

I was made redundant when I was pregnant with my first child. At the time I was so ensconced in responding to the demands of a baby tyrant whose requests for food were all-consuming, that I put off worrying about how I would make an income once my maternity leave came to an end.

But all too soon it did, and I needed to earn a living. And so I forced myself to leave my by-then familiar comfort zone of motherhood and raised my head above the parapet. I swallowed my pride, and I asked a few of my contacts from my previous jobs if they could make use of me, somehow.

I didn’t really know what to expect. But here I am, more than 9 years later. I still don’t have a “proper” job, but I’ve been gainfully employed - on my own terms, around looking after my children, doing projects that make my heart sing - ever since. Despite this, however, I still find myself apologising in a mortifyingly British way when people ask what I do for a living, muttering something about working in education.

But I’m making a pact with myself to stop doing that. Because in building this website - something I have put off for far too long - I’ve realised that I am a credible education consultant. I have been for a number of years now. I add value to client teams in so many ways. I bring a new perspective, unlimited enthusiasm, high levels of diligence, a pretty good depth of knowledge and plenty of ideas.

So if I sound like what you’re looking for, drop me a line.

Here’s to the next 9 years!