A ghastly redundancy? Heck no!
I was told on Tuesday I am going to be made redundant, possibly at the end of June 08. For some, this would be ghastly news. For me, this is the opportunity I have been waiting for.
You see, while I like change and think I’m good at dealing with it, personally I rarely change. I’ve been working for the same company, admittedly in differing roles, for nigh on 15 years. Being made redundant will spur me into action, and allow me to consider a more balanced life.
Today I’m going to work up my short-, medium- and long-term goals, and try very actively to plan a more creative life, while still factoring in earning an income that will feed the hungry mortgage. Early ideas include diversifying:
- perhaps working three days a week as a contractor in the content and information architecture space
- earning a part-time income from a duo my partner & I are forming, performing acoustic sets at cafes in and around the Yarra Valley
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earning a part-time income from things I create. This could include:
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baking German shortbread, and selling them at local tourist markets
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doing up old junk and selling transformed pieces online
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selling my knitted & crocheted wares at local markets, shops and online (see www.handmade3777.etsy.com)
- selling felted creations, though I’m yet to learn how to felt.
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So, some ideas are on the table and a redundancy will give me the opportunity to explore and test the viability of some of these options.
At least, I’ll be able to take a little break from full-time work, which to me will be like a long cold drink after a very big walk (think Oxfam).
Scarves
Having increased my travel time to work by 50ish minutes when I moved to the country this year, I was feeling a bit washed out when Friday showed up. The fix I settled on was to take an annual leave day each week, for nine Fridays, starting late July 07.
While it was a shocker in terms of keeping up with work, it was a great salve for my creative side. I was able to sleep in, to potter, to read, to admire the view, to hang out with the cats, to turn over and over in my mind the possibility of permanent part-time work in my current organisation and to consider the possibility of becoming a contractor.
During my part-time sabbatical, I found myself hankering for colour, for texture, for fabric. I bought some wool on eBay, augmented the selection with some purchases at Spotlight, dragged out my mother’s old knitting needles and began to knit. Here are the first three scarves I made during August. I hope you like them.
Two things you need to know about my mother and her family:
- Mum died in a car accident 16 years ago and while the memory of her is becoming paper thin, I find great comfort in doing things she did and using tools she used. As such, all the scarves are made using the same needles, the wool doubled or tripled if the ply is too thin for the needle!
- My mother’s mother’s maiden name is Meisner, which translates loosely to ‘weaver’. My sisters and I have a love of colour, texture, fabric, of creating stuff with our hands. No matter whether it’s nature or nurture, the pull for us is real.
While knitting, I created a label called 3777 Hand Knut in Healesville. The point of the label and my big run on scarf making is not really to earn money from them right now – let’s face it, it’s Spring in Australia – though if they make their way onto the necks of scarf lovers the world ’round because someone loved them, that’s great. The longer-term reason for doing this is to act on creative impulses and move toward the life I want to live rather than the one I find myself feeling like I have to live.
And by the way, since my nine Fridays are now done, I’ve negotiated to work each Friday from home. A small change, though one that’s moving me in the direction I’d like to go.
Until next time, remember it’s not how skilled your hands are, it’s how keen your mind is for those hands to create and whether you act on the impulse.
Where hand made begins
For a long time, I felt I was waiting for my life to begin. A bit like waiting for those pandas on rollerskates in the Kit Kat ad. The turning point for me was living with a great friend for three years. I bought half her house in an inner-city Melbourne suburb and moved in. I lived out the back with my critters, and she lived upstairs with her kidlets.
During our cohabitation we shared dishwashers, stories, wine, food, friends, chores, cleaning bills, washing machines and lines, sorrow, joy, novelty birthday cakes, work, gardening and more. We had separate fridges and our cats hated each other. I fed the possums and she tolerated them in our roof.
Eventually the house became too small for us all, so I found another place to live, which feels more like me, and is proving to be the basis of a new, more creative way of living.
There are some things though I took away with me when I moved out to Healesville in February, about the way she is, and how she lives. I’d like to be more like her in these ways.
- Think, Do, Get. Good or bad, what you think, you do and end up getting as a result.
- The Certaintly Principle. If you’re certain about something, you can generally sway an outcome to the way you see it. So, if you’re passionate about a topic or expert in it, and find your voice is not heard, try being more certain.
- Generosity. My friend always gave according to what she could and never did it reluctantly or with an eye on a return favour being due to her.
So, hurrah to great friends and to changing yourself if you want to.
Who knows, yet, what the focal point will be? Fabrics, textures and colours? Perhaps old junk done up like Sunday?
Until then, I’ll continue to focus on being creative each day, will remember to Think, Do & Get in a positive way and, as always, will reduce, reuse & recycle.
