Do you know what I’m thankful for? 

I’m thankful that I don’t have to worry about what clothes to wear to be perceived as ‘professional.’ 

I’m thankful that I don’t have to buy a brand new wig just to fit in the workplace.

You might not relate, but believe me, as a black woman, this is a huge relief. 

I normally have to pay attention to these aspects: 

• Am I producing quality work? 
• Does my hair make me look ‘ghetto’ or ‘ratchet?’
• Are my co-workers uncomfortable with my presence? 
• Do my clothes show my curvy physique in a classy or ‘stripper girl’ way? 
• Am I giving off Megan thee Stallion or Olivia Pope vibes? 
• Do I need a new wig? Is my natural hair unprofessional? 
• How black is ‘too black’ for this company? 

It may seem silly to some, but these variables have directly affected my professional and educational pursuits. 

For once, my appearance and my race is not a defining factor in my professional progress. 

Without the traditional work environment, work is really just about work. I think that’s what I love most about remote work. No, BS, just right down to business!

My Thoughts on Partner Life

This partnership experience is different from the traditional ones where partners do busy-work and specialize in getting coffee orders.

I’m actually doing the work that matters and seeing direct results/consequences. 

The Pearl Lemon work environment uses a learn by doing approach. 

Picture walking with your three-year-old who can’t swim. Imagine that her favorite teddy bear is in the water. Instead of getting it yourself, you drop her in the water and watch her kick and scream until she figures out how to float and eventually retrieves her teddy. 

Sounds pretty brutal right? 

Exactly. 

That’s the best way to look like a psychotic parent. However, the little girl now knows how to swim under pressure which would’ve taken her months to learn with formal training. 

My point is, using a learn by doing approach to train partners makes us learn skills that would’ve taken us months or years to develop. 

I’m a senior at Franklin University Switzerland, I’ve spent years analyzing and studying theoretical aspects of Communication & Media Studies. With this partnership, there’s no more theory, it’s just swim, swim, swim. 

At first, this was quite scary, to be honest. I was used to having every step clearly laid out and explained. This time, I have to figure it out as I go and I love it. 

I’m developing very important skills that would’ve taken me much longer to learn if it wasn’t for this learn by doing approach. 

What’s in store next week?

The team is developing a training course for freelance writers. 

Pearl Lemon Academy will be helpful for new writers to develop important skills to excel in the field and make money for themselves. 

As soon as I started editing the materials and devising curriculum strategies with the head of HR, Federica, I knew I wanted to be a part of it. 

Next week I’ll be doing more work with Pearl Lemon Academy to develop a strong program that will help writers worldwide. 

Being the nerd that I am, I’ve always found curriculum development fascinating and I love the research that goes into devising a strong program. I look forward to this transition. 

It’s nice to be part of a company that is constantly expanding and coming up with new innovations. There really isn’t a status quo here, we just want more, more, more.