I’ve recently been approached by an old contact congratulating me on the move to freelancing and being my own boss. She also asked about the possibility of doing some pro bono work. And it’s thrown up a few questions. Namely, is it the right thing to do? And is it the right thing to do right now?
A Volunteering Mindset
The voluntary sector is all about the public good. All charities formally their register their charitable purposes (chosen from the 13 available), and the culture within charities is often reflective of the wider organisation’s purpose. People are very giving, there’s a culture of going above and beyond and often an expectation of supporting the organisation in fundraising, and by volunteering is often part of that culture. And it’s the culture I’ve been part of for 12 years. It’s why I love the sector so much, and it’s why I find it really hard to keep to “set hours” when there’s work to be done, to help an organisation achieve their goals. Like many in the charity sector, if someone one asks for help, my default is often to say yes, even if it doesn’t really work. So, when the ask came in, I can feel the “yes” already brewing.
It’s a good thing to do
In my defence, it would be a good thing to do. There’s a community resource that residents are keen to save, and it could be a wonderful piece of work to do. Something that unites a local community in a common fight, retaining a valuable asset in the community – what’s not to get behind? To be honest, I’m delighted to be asked. She definitely framed the ask well. They’re looking for someone “experienced and trustworthy” – you can’t help but be flattered.
It would also be lovely to do something local (ish). All the work I’ve done so far has either been remote, or for organisations a fair trek away, sometimes both. There’s something really appealing about helping someone local in this new venture of mine. Especially as it’s in the town that I started my first charity role in. Am I in danger of romanticising this?!
Is it work I want to do?
At the moment, the work itself is a bit of an unknown. The outline is that a group of residents want to save a community building and are in the very early stages. Presumably it’s about their governance options to start with – if and how they want to formally establish themselves as a group, and then related to that how they decide on their action plan, which in the first instance is around a business plan for running it and fundraising. It’s certainly work I could do, although I may need to do some refreshing of my governance knowledge since it’s been quite a few years since I did any of that. And double-check where exactly they are at, to make sure I’m not making any fatal assumptions.
Can I afford to?
They were upfront that it’s free advice they need right now, although there is the potential for paid work later on. While I love the idea, the practicality of taking on more work without any income really isn’t ideal while I’m so limited in time. I’ve already got 70% of my available time committed on contracts across the next few months, which is already looking shaky in terms of fitting in all my business admin of IT, finance, marketing, blog-writing, searching for and securing new work, networking and keeping up my CPD. There is a real danger this early on that adding in more work might tip me over the edge.
There’s also no clarity on when, or even if, any paid opportunity from it might be available. It might be work that never gets traction and can never offer any paid income. I mean, it might also capture everyone’s hearts, have great clarity of purpose, encourage amazing people to be involved, secure brilliant funds and create some great freelance work. It’s just that a “might” doesn’t pay the bills.
Pro bono or volunteer work, along with a sliding scale of day rates for smaller and larger organisations is definitely something I aspire to, but committing now feels risky. I’m already a volunteer mentor with The Cranfield Trust, and give time every month to phone a charity leader and discuss where they’re at. It’s a wonderful thing to do, and I really enjoy our chats, but even that sometimes feels like it comes round really quickly and has been tough to squeeze in amongst everything else.
She’s a good friend
She’s someone I worked with many years ago, and I loved working with. She bravely set herself up many years ago and now runs a really successful company. It would be fantastic to work together again. I can’t lie, I’m tempted just because it’s her that’s asked. She also recognised in her message that it might be too big an ask, and that she remembered people wanting to pick her brains for free when she started out. Which helps me feel like she understands the dilemma I have and would respect a boundary of not asking too much.
Networking
The other aspect I can’t help but consider is that – this is what you want from freelancing. A network of people that know and trust you, and approach you for your work, or recommend you to others. A big part of my commitment to regularly posting on LinkedIn is exactly for this purpose. And that’s how she knew I was available. If I was involved, there would be definite benefits in getting my name back into the very local voluntary and community sector community, as it’s a sector that knows me from previous roles, and I feel like there’s more potential then to generate opportunities.
Final Verdict?
I’m probably my own worst enemy, but I’m thinking of agreeing to attend an initial meeting to scope things out. Key things on my mind are – who’s involved (personalities as well as passion and experience), clarity of purpose (are they united in what they want to achieve, and does it feel possible), and where they’re at (how far through this process are they and what exactly is it they need right now). From there, hopefully I can work out whether its me, or someone else they need, and take a more final decision on my involvement. I think it’s unlikely I’ll be able to be involved at this point in my freelancing, especially while trying to balance the kids. However much I might want to. What I’ve got to be really careful of is that “charitable mentality” piping up, before my logical brain has kicked in and warns me off overcommitting myself. Because as someone warned me recently, the focus right now while I’m establishing myself should be on over-delivering, not overcommitting.
Image Credit: Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash