A year of Shorthand PR
(Originally posted on LinkedIn on Friday, August 20)
That's my first year up running Shorthand PR. It's been neither the personal nor economic disaster I feared it might.
Lots of folk have asked if I'd recommend breaking away and setting up alone. I think I probably would, on balance.
There are a few drawbacks. I've found it can be lonesome at times; not in terms of having people to chat to or socialise with - I'm actually still interacting with many of the people I always did. But it can be tricky not having anyone to turn to for a second opinion or advice in everyday matters. You end up with mistakes and oversights as a result (although there are always friends and colleagues you can consult on the big stuff).
Not having anyone to fall back on technologically can be an issue too - if your email stops working, you're pretty much out on your own.
But otherwise it's great, especially once you've acclimatised to the uncertainty of life running a business, which I was fortunate to more or less straight away.
As everyone says flexibility is superb, though it just as often means working at 11pm on a Sunday as it does having a random Thursday off.
Above all it's permanently interesting, you never stop thinking about it and there isn't really a limit on what you can achieve with it all. Maybe the sheer necessity of the situation gives you a gear you didn't know was there.
Anyway, you didn't need to know any of that. Will check in next year when it's all fallen flat.
That's my first year up running Shorthand PR. It's been neither the personal nor economic disaster I feared it might.
Lots of folk have asked if I'd recommend breaking away and setting up alone. I think I probably would, on balance.
There are a few drawbacks. I've found it can be lonesome at times; not in terms of having people to chat to or socialise with - I'm actually still interacting with many of the people I always did. But it can be tricky not having anyone to turn to for a second opinion or advice in everyday matters. You end up with mistakes and oversights as a result (although there are always friends and colleagues you can consult on the big stuff).
Not having anyone to fall back on technologically can be an issue too - if your email stops working, you're pretty much out on your own.
But otherwise it's great, especially once you've acclimatised to the uncertainty of life running a business, which I was fortunate to more or less straight away.
As everyone says flexibility is superb, though it just as often means working at 11pm on a Sunday as it does having a random Thursday off.
Above all it's permanently interesting, you never stop thinking about it and there isn't really a limit on what you can achieve with it all. Maybe the sheer necessity of the situation gives you a gear you didn't know was there.
Anyway, you didn't need to know any of that. Will check in next year when it's all fallen flat.