‘I’m most proud of taking the leap to start Own Futures’
Taking our Q&A this week is Michelle Hogan, founder of Own Futures. The company plan, deliver and evaluate careers lessons and events for schools.
WHY DID YOU START YOUR BUSINESS IN THE FIRST PLACE?: I had taught for nearly 20 years in secondary schools and for the last 10 had been Head of Careers. I became more and more convinced of the need to start children thinking about careers and choices from a younger age. By the time they get to secondary school many children have fixed ideas about what they are ‘good’ and ‘bad’ at, as well as stereotypical views about who can do what job. I decided to set up Own Futures to deliver Careers Related Learning to primary schools as well as secondary, to open students’ eyes from a young age to different jobs, routes and options. I also knew how time consuming it could be to organise careers events and activities in and amongst doing the day to day teaching job so knew that if Own Futures could fully manage these, including organising volunteers from the world of work, it would remove the burden on a teacher in the school having to do this.
WHAT IS YOUR BUSINESS MOTTO?: To engage students in their ‘Own Futures’ from a young age
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO ANYONE STARTING THEIR OWN BUSINESS?:
To go for it! It is hard work, but the rewards are immense. Be prepared for the quiet times and also be prepared to see where yourbusinessgoes. Thedirection you think it is going to go in, isn’t necessarily where it ends up.
WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE YOU
FACED STARTING YOUR BUSINESS?: I was still teaching when I started Own Futures as I wanted to see my year 11s through to their GCSEs; this meant I had a notice period from September to June! It was hard to give Own Futures the time it needed when I was still marking English essays and preparing students for their exams. I found I was working even longer hours than I ever had done before in order to get all the background stuff done for Own Futures so once I left my school, I would be able to hit the ground running. It was worth it in the end though as it meant I could launch my website and social media straight away and already had work lined up.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY
MOST ABOUT BEING SELFEMPLOYED?: The flexibility. I find being self-employed fits in brilliantly with family life, far better than teaching did! My daughter has just started school and it is lovely to be able to walk her there most mornings and then come home and work. I also love doing something I enjoy every day! WHAT DO YOU ENJOY
LEAST ABOUT BEING SELFEMPLOYED?: To be honest, I haven’t really come across anything I really dislike. Having been employed for 20 years, it is a nice alternative! I guess the hardest thing to get used to is not getting a wage on a particular day of the month and therefore budgeting is key, particularly when just starting out.
WHICH BUSINESS FIGURE DO YOU MOST ADMIRE AND WHY?: My dad! Although not a well-known businessman, he was a self-employed plumber for all my childhood and taught me the importance of working hard and getting everything in writing!! He loved working for himself but was also honest about how it wasn’t always easy - waiting for people to pay you, long hours, no sick pay etc. I thought he might be nervous about me going self-employed and try to talk me out of it, but he couldn’t have been more proud and supportive.
WHAT ACHIEVEMENT IN YOUR CAREER ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF?: Taking the leap to start Own Futures and it being a success!
Getting repeat business from schools shows I must be doing something right!
WHERE DO YOU SEE YOUR BUSINESS GOING IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS?: I would like to continue to see it grow, working in more primary schools in particular, helping more children think about their futures. I want to make sure it keeps the personal touch though. I work with the schools to create a bespoke programme which suits their needs which I think is really important. All schools are different, and I strongly believe it is important to adapt to suit the school and students rather than expect them to adapt to fit a rigid programme.
IF YOU COULD INVENT
ONE NEW PRODUCT, WHAT WOULD IT BE?: A mirror where people could see their positives as others see them. When I am working with children and ask them to tell me who in the class is the best leader, who is the most creative, who is the most resilient etc, the look on those children’s face when they are named is amazing and you can see them grow a little inside. Something that gave that boost every day would be great!
‘My advice would be to for it! It is hard work, but the rewards are immense’ Michelle Hogan