Six jobs no brain...

I have decided to start a blog about the up's and downs of starting an ethical business.

My business GreenKnickers is my life, it is also likely to be the death of me. When I say it is my life I do not mean to imply that I am able to spend my time doing greenknickers work. Infact at the last count I had six jobs. These include two paid jobs - Part time receptionist for an Architect's firm in Soho(where I am also involved in some graphic design work on the side) and freelance graphic designer/illustrator. This is my source of income at present which covers the rent of a little flat in West Norwwod London and food - nothing else. Being a greeny and being utterly broke I cycle to and from Soho each day to earn my bread and butter.

So those are the two paid jobs, other jobs/projects include illustrating a childrens book written by my talented other half as well as and assiting him in the making of short films and videos. Number four - designing bags and mens ties for a fair trade coop in India.

My fifth and main job is both the sunshine and darkness in my life, designer/director/ad hocker for GreenKnickers Limited. She captures everything that I want from a business and from a career. Designing exciting products that capture my two most treasured passions - Ethics and undies. I love underwear and I love designing underwear. I love the relationship that women have with their underwear - secretive and expressive. My other passion is the planet and it's people, something that I do not see as two seperate entities. I am naively optimistic about the possibility for change and the consequesnces of sustainable, ecological and ethical developement.

What is the sixth job? Well job number six comes hand in hand with the first lession I have learned that is specific to ethical business. Many other lessons have been learned so far which are key to the running of any business. What is this lesson? Well that will have to wait until I have had time to digest the lesson fully.

Over time I will attempt to caprture the experience and challenges of creating an ethical enterprise (job number 7? - we'll see). In my next entry I will introduce you to GreenKnickers and to my business Partner Rose - she is the difference between GreenKnickers the business and GreenKnickers the project.

Time is the most difficult thing to find, if there was more time then everything would be possible. But there isn't.