Anti 9-to-5 profile: Leslye Wood
The anti 9-to-5er: Leslye Wood, Seattle (featured in The Anti 9-to-5 Guide!)
My job: Freelance marketing communications — strategy, messaging, copywriting since 1997.
What makes my gig anti 9-to-5: Within the scope and timeline of each project, I can work whenever and wherever I like. I can choose my clients. The profits from my corporate work fund the pro-bono work [freebies] I do for organizations and causes I’m passionate about. After nearly 10 years, the freedom of this still astounds and delights me.
What I did in my former 9-to-5 life: In my corporate incarnation, I went from an eager first-time manager who loved my work to a burned-out executive zombie in 12 progressively more stressful years. As I worked my way up to Director of Marketing and Sales, the work required me to be increasingly disconnected from the things I loved to do and increasingly engaged in the things I didn’t love to do. The hours got longer and the satisfaction thinner. I woke up one morning and realized I was miserable.
How I made the anti 9-to-5 leap: In classic “best thing that ever happened to me” style, I lost my job and found my passion. I was lucky enough to have a modest severance package, which allowed me the luxury to not rush into my next chapter. Even so, I had only set my sights on a similar position in a less crazy company. But through sheer synchronicity, while interviewing and hoping for the perfect job offer, I stumbled on the opportunity to try some freelance corporate communications. I was hooked. When the job offer of my dreams came, I turned it down and jumped off the cliff into entrepreneurship.
My biggest obstacles: I was recently divorced, had one kid in college and another to follow shortly. I had a big mortgage and no guarantee of freelance work. I didn’t really even know what a copywriter was. It didn’t matter. I knew I had discovered a gift for writing and a strong pull to create a business. I felt that if I turned my back on the opportunity and played it safe, I might not get another chance. A lot of people have told me how much they admire the courage it took to make this decision. But frankly, although I went through the motions of evaluating the job offer, it really didn’t feel like a decision. I just knew I had to do it.
My tips for other cubicle expats:
- Find a niche or two where you can really shine.
- Hone your craft continually.
- Build relationships and empathy with your clients — understand their daily pain points and become someone who helps relieve them.
- Be more than a writer — offer expertise in strategy, ask hard questions and challenge assumptions, stay on top of your clients’ industries.
What’s that link again? My business site: ljwood.com. My current pro-bono work in Nigeria: blog.ljwood.com and SweetCrudeMovie.com.
Want to be a profiled anti 9-to-5er? Just fill out this here survey.
9 comments March 6th, 2007
