You see it all the time. Those cool, young professionals working from coffee shops – probably over caffeinated. What on earth do they do that gives them the flexibility to earn a living like that, while I’m stuck here taking a 3-minute walk just to grab a quick coffee before I go back to my cubicle?
That cool, young professional I referred to? That’s me now. It’s weird to be on the other side of it – you can feel everyone trying to look at your screen. What do you do? Are you a student? You’re probably a starving artist… but then how do you afford all that coffee? Those judging faces.
So I’m here to clarify. We work. We work hard. We’re either freelancers for what we excel in, run our own business or work for a company that’s based out of another location (that’s me!).
So, what’s it like being the only employee for your company in a given city?
For me, I’m in Toronto. And I work for a Vancouver-based start up called Pressboard, it’s a marketplace that connects advertisers and publishers via a technology platform.
Working solo has its perks, for sure; however, there’s also a few drawbacks. Here’s what I’ve learned in my first three months at Pressboard.
1. You matter. Yes, you do. Your expertise is needed, valued and admired. There’s no other reason that you would be the only employee for a company in a given region.
2. The only thing more flexible is a yogi. You make your own schedule and work in a way that makes you as productive as possible. For me, that’s the blurring of my personal and professional life. When you’re passionate about your job, it doesn’t matter if you’re working on something over the weekend because you can go get a haircut on a Tuesday afternoon.
3. Be your own boss (shhhh). Although I have someone just a phone call away whenever I want, for the most part I feel like I’m my own boss. The autonomy that comes with working solo is empowering; it makes you feel trusted and respected to get sh*t done.
4. Solo brainstorms aren’t a thing. [looks around] “Oh, right. It’s just me.” The best ideas usually come from collaboration. Collaborating is sometimes not as convenient when you’re a team of one. It just takes a bit more effort and planning on your side – but the tools are there to organize virtual brainstorms, be it via Google Hangouts, Skype or BlueJeans.
5. No rest for the wicked. It’s hard work. It’s not your “9 to 5, come home, eat dinner, watch tv, sleep, repeat” type of job. You get out what you put in – and when you’re a team of one, you have to work extra hard to wear all those hats thrown at you.
6. Not for faint of heart. Working in a satellite region for a company comes with all kinds of risks. You need to be able to embrace them – they’re taking a chance on you being the only employee in a market they obviously want to grow in, so you need to take the risk and embark on this adventure with them to help achieve those goals. It will only set you up for future success as the company grows.
All this to say, it’s takes a certain kind of person to be able to excel in the world of working remotely. So next time you’re at your local coffee shop grabbing a latte, give us a smile. You know we’re working just as hard as you.
Anita
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Thanks for reading. If you liked this post you may like “1o reasons you should join a startup”