Flexible working: Is it that much of a stretch?
Flexible working seems like a far-off dream for most of us, but as copywriting consultancy founder Emma Heath discovered, it's actually far more important than most of us realise.
Prior to setting up my own business, I worked in an environment notorious for its lack of flexibility: the advertising agency. While not all agencies are the same, it’s fairly safe to say the rumours are mostly true – this is an industry that doesn’t exactly encourage a healthy work/life balance.
I spent my twenties in a state of constant insecurity and dread, always terrified that if I wasn’t the last to leave each night, I’d be out of a job. We basically all felt this way. We didn’t even question it. Hey, we’d seen the Devil Wears Prada, we knew our situation wasn’t exactly unique.
When I finally decided to go off and do my own thing, the main reason wasn’t because I was being ignored, oppressed as a woman, or sidelined for a promotion – it was purely because I wanted a life!
Rather than being judged by the hours spent at my desk, I wanted to be valued for the work I actually produced. I suspected that I was actually making my employer a fair bit of money – but the faster, more productive I was, the more I was asked to do.
At first, my writing consultancy was just an excuse to work from home, and an attempt to get fairly remunerated for the value I was delivering clients (not the weekends and nights I sacrificed in a fruitless attempt to appease my boss). I had modest expectations. I figured if I could make remotely the same wage I did in an agency, I’d be sweet. After all, I’d be working from home! Unheard of in advertising, and many other industries too. I crossed my fingers and got cracking.
The weird thing was, flexibility made things easier.
Gone were the days of dragging myself out of bed, schlepping into work, worrying about politics, and trying to get a few minutes peace in lunch hour. Now, I just woke up, sat down, and did the work. I did it whenever and wherever I wanted. I didn’t need to worry about being monitored. I was accountable to my clients and that was quite enough to keep me motivated.
As long as I communicated clearly and was super organised, no one turned a hair. Clients were happy their work was being done well, and delivered on time. They didn’t care if I worked random, weird hours or rewarded myself with the occasional early-mark. They didn’t even care when I spent a month-long stint working from a polo ranch in Argentina.
The work kept rolling in. And before I knew it, I had a thriving business, more work than I knew what to do with, and an amazing team working alongside me.
And while plenty has changed, our commitment to flexibility isn’t one of them. Now, my growing team all work flexibly in some way, shape or form. It’s not a concept we’ve had to retrofit, it’s simply how we do things. How we’ve always done things!
It’s not just little teams like ours who are doing it, either.
One of my longest standing clients is Mirvac, a major Australian property company. The sector they work in is not known for its flexibility, especially when it comes to teams on construction sites (you can’t exactly pop off early when you’re building a skyscraper on a deadline).
But in spite of this, I’ve been pleased to see Mirvac seize the opportunity to encourage flexible working by introducing a company-wide initiative called My Simple Thing.
As the name suggests, this is a simple concept. It involves each person at Mirvac nominating one simple thing they can do to achieve better work/life balance – and to work with their team to make it a reality.
Some come in late or work from home once a week, so they can spend quality time with their family. Some take time out to play sport, or get a massage. Some train for ocean marathon swims (psychopaths).
The beauty is, your ‘Simple Thing’ can be anything you like. In the words of Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz: “It’s not up to us to tell people what’s best for them. Different things work for different people. We don’t judge.”
It’s been refreshing to see the convo move on from the ‘mum’ thing too.
For so long, really the only valid reason to work flexibly was because you were a woman who had kids (and even then, there was a serious guilt factor involved in leaving the office at 4pm, even when you’d been in since 6am). For some reason dads didn’t get the same leeway. And God forbid anyone have any other reason to be somewhere else mid-week.
But parents aren’t the only ones to appreciate flexibility, so does everyone else, regardless of their age, stage or situation. Life by nature isn’t rigid, stuff happens to all of us that we can’t anticipate.
Kids break their arms, people move house, relationships begin and end, amazing travel opportunities pop up, weddings and funerals happen, parents get old. We need to roll with the punches. And you can’t do that when you’re stuck in an 8am – 6pm straitjacket.
So how can we all make flexibility a reality?
You know how I said flexibility made things easier for me? Well just to clarify, I did not mean to suggest that it was an inherently easy thing to achieve. Even when I was just one person, there was a lot to be learned in the process. Now, a few years on, I know that when it comes to flexible working, there are definitely a few musts.
Communicate. If you’re working remotely or irregular hours, you absolutely have to keep your team in the loop. It’s not for surveillance reasons, it’s just so everyone’s expectations are managed and there are no surprises. If you’re going to be offline or AWOL for a period, it really helps to let your team know.
Have a game plan. If you set out what needs to be achieved by when (and any milestones that need to be met along the way) you can manage expectations and keep everyone on the same page. The more notice you can give about when you may need personal time, the easier it will be to accommodate.
Choose your ‘workspace’ wisely. Working at home may seem appealing but if your internet is patchy, there are screaming kids underfoot, or there’s construction happening next door, don’t even try! Wherever you choose to work, it needs to enable you to work productively and professionally.
Make time together count. One hazard of flexible working is that it’s harder to get the team together in person. For this reason, it’s really important to allocate time each week to catch up face-to-face. Even just for a coffee! This kind of quality time is what keeps your culture intact.
Emma Heath is founder and director of Words By Nuance.
Good on you, Emma. Smart enough to dictate your working hours. Clever enough to know office hours never equate with creativity. Pity more ad agencies aren’t as rational.
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Great article – the hours shouldn’t matter as long as you put in the work. I wish more agencies would adopt the same mindset!
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Great article Emma and fantastic photo! All the best with your flexible work life.
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I too spent a couple of decades in advertising and media agencies both putting in long hours and trying to look like I was putting in long hours.
These days however I work a flexible four day week mostly remotely but also going to the office when and if I am needed – my work is judged purely on merit and no one questions where I am and why my phone didn’t answer at 5.15pm. And yes I still work in advertising for one of the largest agency groups, so I think things have moved on a lot from the old days.
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Hey Alison, this is so good to hear! I think you are right too, things are changing & will continue to do so. One of my mates who still works for a big shop now works from home two days a week too – this kind of thing shows it’s def possible 🙂
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You’re speaking my language Emma! Taking a break and working flexible hours can bring a new perspective and better results for work as well as bringing happiness at home. It’s definitely a balancing act but if you can get it right the rewards are there.
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Thanks, Emma – great story. I’m on a similar path, albeit at a much earlier stage (maybe paragraph 7, pushing for paragraph 8!). A large part of my motivation is to build a business/workplace around similar values, as well as being able to work with clients/industry sectors I care about. So I take heart from what you’re achieving. Cheers!
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Too true… More flexibility means more life, means more happy, means more creativity. And as you say, it is indeed easier to make work than some may think. Love the Mirvac “Simple Thing” idea too… easy baby-step into the new world for businesses who are clutching to the old.
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Hi Emma, my goodness was I nodding along in agreement with pretty much everything you said. Thank you for changing the conversation and sharing your story. The advertising and media industry has a way to go, but people like you who are showing what success looks like when ‘work’ looks different are paving the way. I love that you are shifting the conversation from the mum side of the equation – we at Juggle are vehemently saying the exactly same thing: making flex only there for working mums, makes it actually not work at all for those mums as they end up feeling guilty, and working stupid hours to deal with the guilt. And it makes everyone else resent the fact that their lives are not thought to be as important. Wonderful article I am hopping over to share on LinkedIn right away! Thank you!!!
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