So are we a network of Fractional workers? Not exactly...
Our crystal ball is broken: We know the workplace has changed forever, but we can't-- and won't--suggest only one way to fix it.
At the end of a week devoted to a webinar and a Deep Dive on fractional work, I got a call from a dear friend who’s long been on my Personal Advisory Board (something I believe everyone should cultivate). She advised us on Optionality, even before Elisa and I decided to call it that. She helped us think through our “why”; participated in our pre-launch; posted on our Slack channel; attended office hours; joined our first webinar — the whole nine.
So I was surprised — and not — when she called and asked me a very real question: “What do I tell people about you? That you’re a network for Fractionals?”
My answer was not one that any marketer would approve of: “Yeah … but we’re so much more too. We’re addressing a number of pathways people like us are thinking about at this stage in our careers.”
Her candid response: “You should probably get that sorted.”
We’re a month in to this passion project; it seems we have some ‘splaining to do. It’s important to distinguish who we help and what we hope to accomplish together. And why, while we love our Fractionals (I am one!), we can’t paint our entire community with that brush.
PREMIUM MEMBERS: How do you form, manage, and sustain a Fractional career? In this installment of our Deep Dive series, we explore productivity, personal expectations, and employer negotiation.
Let’s start from the beginning: We love disruptive, democratizing moments. We’re in one right now.
As some of our members know, Optionality isn’t our first launch rodeo; Elisa and I co-founded (along with Lisa Stone) a venture-backed digital community for bloggers and digital influencers (the 2005 equivalent to today’s “creators”) called BlogHer. We didn’t intend to build a VC-backed company; we were simply three creators ourselves with digital media and marketing backgrounds who wanted to gather with others like us to build best practices, community, and in some cases careers, out of this emerging movement of self-published, many-to-many content generation.
For some of our members, content creation was professionally motivated; they wanted to build thought leadership, generate speaking gigs and build a client base. Some were stay-at-home and working parents and needed an outlet of expression and empathy for their wins and anxieties. Some were passionate about their causes and hobbies and sought to build movements among likeminded tribes. Some wanted to monetize doing what they loved. Some wanted to build their own media empires. Most were a combination of all of these motivations and had a deep desire to connect with others for support.
Swap out the word “Creators” with “Workers in Transition” and you will get a sense of what we’re doing here with Optionality.
So, addressing my friend’s question: Are you a network for Fractionals? The answer is, for some of us, yes. Some of us are 1099s, but some of us are W2s and career questioning, and a few of us are on the employer side of the equation and understand that if we don’t build more optionality into work we will increasingly find it difficult to retain or hire talent.
This week’s OPEN THREAD: In our latest webinar, we learned from Harris Poll that 53% of executive women feel "more heard and respected" working from home. How about you? Where are you your best work self? Home of Office?
At BlogHer we built best practices around civil engagement, safe community spaces, and worked with brands and regulatory organizations to create best practices around transparency and disclosure, to protect both creators and advertisers. We intend to do the same with Optionality, creating an understanding between employers and the experienced workforce.
We intend to normalize well-being, purpose, and the panoply of what we find meaningful as part of the work experience. We’re up-skilling each other in new best practices and the technologies that will most impact the future of work. We’re giving structure to alternatives to the single-path career existence and charting new courses.
Our crystal ball is broken: We can’t tell you exactly how to pursue your personal and professional bliss amidst socioeconomic uncertainty. But we can help you assess the options and forge a pathway forward.
This year: Expect even more content and convening focused on all of the above.
That said we’d love to hear from you what would be most impactful.