Workstyle Freestyle 028 - 'Loneliness'

Hello Hoxbies! And welcome to Workstyle Freestyle with me, Alex Hirst... And, ah... Just me, for the day. I'm not sure where Lizzie is... This week's Workstyle Freestyle is about... Loneliness! I'm very lucky that I get to work with Lizzie most of the time, but for freelancers, loneliness is a big issue. Now I can see why, because this feels very odd. Apparently, 39% of freelancers have reported experiencing loneliness, and that number rises to 54% among the mid-twenties to mid-thirties. It's a really important issue and something that's closely linked to mental health, obviously, so, therefore, a big concern for us. But I think by having a community that operates and lives online, I think for the most part, we are combatting loneliness well. Certainly in the virtual sense, bringing people together online. But also in a physical sense, we organise meet-ups between ourselves, so locally, but also Hoxby organises Hoxby Homes whereby a Hoxby will open the doors to their place and let fellow Hoxbies in for the day, and they will co-work in the comfort of a home environment. And we'll support them to do that with whatever we can. But it's really a... Hopefully, therefore a big part of the community, it's something that freelancers want to do, because loneliness is an issue and we think that organisations like The Hoxby Collective therefore will have a strong part to play in the future of being freelance, and the future of self-employment. So, if you're working freelance or you know someone who is, and they aren't a member of a community yet, then definitely recommend they come... Oh! Hi Lizzie! You're a little bit late for this one... I'm just wrapping up... We've been Workstyle Freestyle, thanks for tuning in. Bye bye!