I've just started a new client contract. A sort of retainer thingy, where they can access my time, paying in advance, using up credit over a few months.
I generally don't track my time. I tend to bill project fees, as to me, an hour is not a good measure of value.
But this retainer thing made me question what the smallest unit of working time is, for someone like us, and how do we even quantify time spent on a project?
I know for sure that I think about clients in the shower, on the loo, on the train, whilst making coffee, whilst doing my groceries, whilst walking between meetings, whilst running, whilst climbing, whilst asleep.
Don't worry, I'm not saying clients are the ONLY thing I think about, but I am saying that I'm not only thinking about my client work during alloted hours.
When I attended a 25 minute call with the team today, whilst I hadn't formally sat down and worked on the brief yet, I know that I've spent at least 2 hours informally noodling the topic. Client sees 25 minutes, but time spent, five times that.
There's no such thing as an hour.
It's almost always the tip of a cognitive iceberg.
Even if you ignore the daydreaming type thinking, a one-hour phone call is realistically 90 minutes of mental load. A half-day of face time in the client's office is a whole day of travel, prep, faff on top of the actual work.
So, what do you put on a timesheet?
Each week, I’ll try to profile one of our members, so you get to know each other better, and find folk you might want to connect to. Shout if you fancy having your face here.
Hey, I’m Jenny Cavaioli.
I’m coming to you from Brooklyn (Prospect Heights to be specific, holler if you're in the neighborhood).
I'm a transformation strategist focusing on linking strategy and operating culture to help businesses achieve their boldest ambitions. I've been a strategist since a major career pivot in 2016.
I spent the majority of 2024 working with a client in higher ed helping them to define the future student experience and then building an organization that could deliver on that. Higher ed is going through a lot of changes in the US and it felt good to be a part of a team that was approaching their place in that with such care and consideration.
The projects I'm most excited about are ones that are looking to redefine what growth means (away from extractive models) and recognize the value of intentionally shaping a culture to accelerate that shift.
Typically, those projects have leaders that are ready to move with confidence, conviction and a healthy dose of courage.
Some things I’m reading/consuming/loving at the moment:
Reading 'The Psychology of Money' (the most helpful and practical book on money and investing that I've read).
Consuming Pasteis de Belem (I was recently in Lisbon and now wake up every gray, cold winter morning wishing I had brought home a full-sized suitcase packed with these)
Loving getting into pottery under the guidance of a dear friend (it's not all pretty but it's fun to make something and not take it too seriously).
You can connect with Jenny on Linkedin or via the Community.
What are you reading, thinking, seeing, feeling, doing? Post something in the chat to share, or in #curiositystream on the slack. Thanks to everyone for sharing what’s tickling their brains.
If you’d like to share something that’s making you think, or work you’re currently doing, drop me a note.
» Praveen Vaidyanathan shared this from Jim Risworld on originality. The irony of me posting an image from someone else, who wrote down a quote from someone else, is not lost on me.
» posted this in a recent issue of his excellent newsletter
» Louie Sumpter posted a treatise on Patience as a form of action:
» continues to shine a light directly on some of the challenges of strategists within the marketing industry, focusing on the mythology of strategy for juniors.
» Amy Daroukakis is doing amazing work with under-represented insights from across the globe, and DROP 6.4 looks at The Pulse of Being: How We Move, Restore & Thrive.
» Jack Conte on the death of the follower
» The future of the internet is smaller
» Ghosting, late payments and a crisis of confidence
Wanna share your work, ideas or thinking with the community? - drop me a message, and I’ll pop it in the next issue. This is a scrapbook of our ideas, so please open up your brains.
Beautiful new little coffee shop on Lower Marsh, called Calico Coffee. They focus on pour-over filter coffee, but don’t come expecting a £2 cuppa. If you know your coffee, this should be a destination for your next time in London. No wifi though. Notebook-based-work only.
Tell us where you’re sat, who you’re working with, what you’re drinking and thinking.
Every week, we share a list of roles found and shared via the the community. Some are directly from businesses who come directly to share their briefs with us. You can get these in real-time if you’re on whatsapp, telegram and slack.
The role at Stink Studios we posted last week was closed pretty quickly, apparently they are going ahead with one of our members (huzzah!). Hoping they found the process valuable, and they’ll continue to share briefs with us.
Also had word from Hannah W that she found a “perfect fit” in a role via the community too. (double huzzah!!).
VSNRY are looking for a specialist in Employee Comms with M&A experience. Reach out directly to Charlotte, and let her know we sent you. More details here.
Freelance Midweight Strategists (London,UK)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20252401-london.html
Content Creator & Strategist (Montreal,CA)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250228-montreal.html
Open Call across variety of sectors (eg hospitality, professional services) (Melbourne,AU)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250228-melbourne.html
Employee comms expert with M&A experience for project in cleantech sector (London,UK)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250227-vsnry.html
freelance junior strategist (NYC,US)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250227-spaceship.html
VP Marketing - 12 Month Interim (UK)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250226-yonder.html
freelance social media strategist (Sydney,AU)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250226-sydney.html
Freelance Content Strategist - B2B, Fintech (London,UK)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250226-content.html
Dutch speaking Freelance Senior Strategist / Strategy Director (Amsterdam,NL)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250225-tbwa.html
social strategists (mid-level) (UK)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250225-social.html
Creative Strategist (NL)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250225-growth.html
Freelance Marketing Strategists with B2B / SaaS / Tech exp (UK)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250225-accelerator.html
Senior Comms Strategist - sustainability (UK)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250224-comms.html
Social Strategy Directors - household tech (London,UK)
https://outsideperspective.co/gigs/20250224-.html
That’s all for this week.
mk ✌️
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