Otegha Uwagba - Little Black Book: A Toolkit for Working Women

Contents

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This eBook first published in Great Britain by 4th Estate in 2017

First published in Great Britain in 2016

Copyright Otegha Uwagba, 2016, 2017

Otegha Uwagba asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

This book is designed to give the reader a general overview of working in the creative industry, it does not give detailed legal or financial advice, readers are always advised to consult independent legal advice.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the authors imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins

Source ISBN: 9780008245115

Ebook Edition June 2017 ISBN: 9780008245108

Version: 2017-05-05

Dedicated to my parents,
who taught me the meaning of hard work,
and continue to lead by example.

If youre a working woman and youve picked up this book, its probably because youve got some questions. Maybe youre just starting out, or maybe youre already pretty experienced. Still, youve got questions. Youre in the right place read on.

The book youre holding right now is a curation of career advice and insights inspired by my own experiences as a young woman trying to make my way in the world. Despite having been lucky enough to start my career at some of the worlds top ad agencies, and later working for cult youth brand Vice, after a few years I found myself at something of a career crossroads: completely unsure of what to do next, but knowing deep down that I needed to make a change sound familiar?

Feeling certain my own experiences couldnt be unique, and desperate to connect with other like-minded women, I decided to combine the things Im most inspired by creativity, women and work into a platform that could support and inspire working women everywhere. Enter Women Who: a modern community connecting women who, separately, are all having the same thoughts when they wake up in the morning. Women who are striving for more. Women who, like me, want or need to make a change.

Because things are changing, arent they? The offices, studios and coffee shops where we spend the majority of our waking hours are constantly evolving, and with them the rulebook on how to build a successful and fulfilling creative career. For the generation of fiercely ambitious and entrepreneurial women that Im a part of, navigating that ever-changing landscape throws up a bunch of complex questions from little things like how to write a sensitive email, or use Instagram to your advantage; to the big, existential, career-defining quandaries, like how to build the kind of personal brand that opens doors, whether to try freelancing or not, and of course, the lifelong dilemma every creative faces how to find that delicate balance between starving artist and corporate shill.

All of which brings us right back to this book, which I wrote to help answer all of those questions (and a few more besides), and to show you how you can achieve success on your own terms whatever those may be.

Because if theres one thing Ive learned along the way, its that we all have ideas sometimes we just need a little help figuring out how to make them happen.

So lets get to work, shall we?

To find out more about Women Who visit www.womenwho.co or follow @womenwho on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Nothing will work unless you do.

Maya Angelou, poet and activist

Producing creative work often means juggling a seemingly endless number of deadlines and projects. This can be both a blessing and a curse: while a bit of variety keeps things fresh, good time management is infinitely trickier when you have lots of competing demands on your time. Read on for some effective ways to make the most of your working hours.

Try starting your working day an hour earlier. If youre not used to early starts this will probably be a little painful at first, but youll soon notice the benefits of getting a head start on your work without anyone to disrupt you, especially if you have clients to report to. Consistency is key to making this habit stick, which means getting up at the same time every day. Studies have also shown that people who get up early actually tend to have higher energy levels, and feel more in control of their day even more reason to become a morning person. And on that note

Resist the temptation to check your emails or social media accounts first thing in the morning, as you run the risk of falling down an Internet rabbit hole. Instead, dedicate the first hour of your working day when your mind is at its freshest to establishing what your priorities are for the day ahead and making a start on them. That first hour is precious, so make the most of it.

Many world leaders and CEOs swear by having a work uniform, i.e. returning to the same outfit (or variations thereof) day in, day out. Eliminating smaller choices such as what to wear each morning means one fewer decision to make over the course of your day, so you can save your brainpower for the important stuff. Plus, youll save precious minutes in the morning, which can only be a good thing. Having a consistent look is also a great way of establishing your personal brand find out more about that in Chapter 3.

Despite the many wonders of modern technology, the humble list remains one of the most effective productivity power tools at your disposal. At the start of each week, make a to-do list of your key goals for the week ahead, prioritizing them in order of importance. By spending a few minutes planning your workflow upfront, you free your brain up to do the real work of creative thinking the rest of the time. You might also find it helps to go analogue with this the process of committing your thoughts to paper can be incredibly clarifying, and having a written list to hand means your goals wont get lost in the jumble of draft tweets and browser tabs that tend to dominate our lives.

Working non-stop doesnt necessarily equate to getting more done, as your brain simply cant operate at peak performance for long stretches of time. Instead of trying to work marathon sessions, aim for shorter periods of focused activity interspersed with regular breaks allowing your brain to recharge. Try scheduling your day into a few two-hour work blocks, comprised of ninety minutes of work followed by a thirty-minute break. Resist the temptation to carry on working beyond the allotted time for each block just because youre in the zone youll be more motivated to return to work if theres something youre dying to finish, as opposed to working yourself to the point of exhaustion.