Back in late 2015, I created a project I called 'When I Grow Up' that was designed to teach 4-9 year olds about basic workplace health and safety. The objective was to give them a general awareness of WHS so that when they entered the workplace as young adults [high risk workers], they would be familiar with some key concepts already.
I was invited to give a TEDx talk about it, named one of Health+Safety at Work Magazine's Top 40 under 40 Outstanding Health and Safety Professionals and was even approached by one of the Big Four for a collab.
Fast forward to 2024, the site is no longer live and I'm not actively working on this project.
So what happened?
[Please keep in mind that at the time I had a full time job, and this project was just one of many I was juggling on the side with no outside funding or assistance].
1. The site got contaminated with Malware and I had to spend thousands of dollars getting it back online and making it secure again.
This was such an expensive, frustrating and deflating exercise, but there were a few good lessons that came out of it:
Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should. Outsource to professionals, or be prepared to pay the cost of your inexperience.
Don't try to do everything yourself.
Back up everything.
The issue was that I had built the website with Wordpress, and one or more of the plug ins I used had a security flaw that allowed the malware in. I don't really know how it all works, but if I was building a website again, needless to say, I would do things differently.
I would:
Pay someone else to do it.
Not use Wordpress again, but if I HAD to, I would make sure I was on top of ALL of the plug in updates and not use any forms or sliders.
Have the site on Squarespace or something similar so I could rely on their security.
2. It was expensive, and I ran out of money.
I have a really broad skillset and I generally try to do everything myself, but this was the first project where I had to bring in someone with a skillset I didn't have - an illustrator. And even though the illustrator I worked with generously gave me mates rates, it still cost me a lot of money to have so many characters illustrated.
Other promotional stuff cost me a lot as well, and even today, I couldn't tell you how much I have invested into this project both in terms of time and money. 😬 Major red flag territory that I don't plan on ever getting into again. 🚩
Because the project had no revenue streams or outside funding sources, it was entirely financed by my own personal savings, and that shit gets tired real quick (though not quick enough incidently).
Eventually I reached the point where I was no longer prepared to invest any more of anything into the project.
Lessons:
Build revenue streams into the project so that you can recover all of your costs and turn a profit so that you can sustain the initiative and fund more work in the future.
Don't be a martyr. Is this actually your problem? Should you [regular person with an average salary] be personally paying to solve it?
Be sensible about the activities you choose to finance and don't feel like you have to act like a much larger organisation with a multi million dollar budget could.
If you're going to do something that makes no money, be 100% ok with that, but have super firm financial/time boundaries and don't cross them. Also accept the secondary costs that this will have for you ie. lost income that you could have generated doing something else. Don't bet the farm on a risky investment.
3. I didn't have anyone to help me.
This one is a bit loaded and I'm not sure I have fully unpacked it even today.
Ultimately, a large scale educational project that is focused on behavioural/social change is not the responsibility or work of a single individual.
No one can or should do it by themselves. Absolutely no one has the capacity to pull this off alone.
Success in an endeavour like this requires the help and assistance of many people and organisations who work together because they are all invested in it being a success ie. they all want the same outcome as much as you do. If that support is absent, it will never work. You can't be the only person who cares about solving this problem.
4. I re-branded the project.
In 2020 I decided to re-brand the project so that it would be easier to find online. The name has changed, the branding has changed and it all looks great.
5. I pivoted to focusing on the future of work.
While I was doing the re-brand, I realised that the future of work was a more pressing area of work for me to focus on. There is one major stream of work that I hope to release this year that is focused on this.
What is the future of the When I Grow Up project?
I'm trying to navigate the complicated waters of:
This is never going to work.
This has so much potential.
I've already spent so much time and money on this, so I shouldn't spend any more.
I've already spent so much time and money on this, so I should give it another chance.
I gave up too early.
I gave up too late.
I should do something else.
This is a great project.
But, I would love to bring this project back to life because:
The idea and execution was/is excellent.
I fundamentally believe in the importance of Workplace Health and Safety education.
I enjoy the work.
It's a great way for me to showcase my skillset and what I can do.
So, watch this space! The When I Grow Up project may be making another appearance again in the coming months, but this time, with all of the hard-earned lessons baked into a new approach and strategy. 🤞🏻
It's been 9 years since I first created this project and A LOT has changed!
P.S If you'd like to work with me on this project, or your own large scale education/social change project, let's talk! lindaradosinska@hey.com
About Linda Radosinska
I am a Creative Director, exhibiting fine art photographer and illustrator and I help professionals get their creative projects off the ground with my structured and holistic 1:1 coaching program | Project Management | Professional & Creative Development | Self-care | Mindset & Blocks |
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