1.07: How to Make a Living: How to lead change and bring new energy when you've got to pay the bills

Tim talks about his first entry into the working world, wanting to find a job that could make a difference. Tuesday notes that she never wanted to work for herself.

Many of us have that moment of taking on a massive amount of debt when we’re young—as soon as the bank notices us as a new source of interest—and we then spend the next several years working to pay it off. For some of us, that’s a wake-up call. —Tim

Tim describes ‘going feral’ and getting approved for a £10,000 credit card, and borrowing from mom and dad to pay it off to the tune of 35% of his income every month.

Tuesday took a course around limiting beliefs around money. She was asked to write down all of her beliefs about poor people, then about rich people—and the contrast in these thoughts was shocking.

Tim and Tuesday explore the friction of negotiating in systems change work. Even though we want to use our talents and skills to make positive change, we still have to pay the bills—so we have to push through that uncomfortable point of attaching money to our contribution.

How does growing up in poverty—or in abundance—influence us as entrepreneurs

How does a global network of contacts come into play when work is thin? How do we make the ask, and how can we make ourselves invaluable?

What other moments and windfalls helped propel us early on? Tim and Tuesday talk about managing the ebb and flow of inheritances, debt, grants, internships, and volunteering.

At what point does systems change work become ‘a real job’? What does that even mean? What does that transition look and feel like, and how can we manage it well?

The field of systems change facilitation didn’t exist until the early 2000s, when Art of Hosting began developing an architecture under all of these different processes.

Tim and Tuesday explore how saying NO to some work helps build your business.

Poem of the day: Mary Oliver's Work, Sometimes