Do Iguanas Need Tiny Sombreros?

I have been thinking a lot about this article from McSweeny’s in 2020, “I TURNED MY PASSION INTO MY DREAM JOB AND NOW I SELL SMALL HATS TO IGUANAS ON INSTAGRAM.” Mostly it comes to me after a LinkedIn check-in session, where it seems 50% of the people are marketing themselves to each other. The article follows a self-proclaimed reptile flaneur selling classes on how to earn oodles of money making tiny hats for iguanas… but he makes his living from the classes, not the hats.

Am I going to turn into the flaneur? Or am I the iguana here? 

With tech’s dumpster fire still smouldering, so many people have exited or are working on their Plan B, C or D. It isn’t the only disrupted industry, I know more writing coaches than professional writers for example. I am actively working with an entrepreneurship program I respect and trust, I am not saying monetising your knowledge is wrong… but I am wondering if the sheer volume of people leaving tech is turning LinkedIn into a lead generation ouroboros.

I’m possibly about to become one of these people developing a personal brand and following on “warm leads.” <shudder> If we move to The Netherlands I need to create a business for DAFT. My husband and I had been thinking of creating a consulting company together, but he has decided to move to writing and is actively editing the 100,000 words that constitute his first novel and honing his pitch for agents. I’m thrilled for him… and vaguely terrified. 

Part of me is excited about the idea of going out on my own. I have been successful in every other wild goal I have set for myself, like leaving non-profits to start a new career in tech at 35 or moving abroad in my late 40s. I believe I can do this. But I catch myself worrying about the value of what I have to share. Is my idea the creative equivalent of little reptile hats? 

Design strategy is an elusive thing to define, and my methods for it are harder to articulate here but clarity is the deliverable. I’ve done this, and at scale across lululemon, Trello, Confluence, and GitLab. I can key into the metaphor or story that unlocks shared understanding for organisations, moving them from a place of reactivity to being proactive.

I am developing my business plan as I wait for the universe to decide what is next depending on Global Talent vs DAFT. I combed through years of reviews and recommendations looking for patterns. Turns out I’m not inventing this; people I trust tell me I’m superlative at creating narratives that give teams agency.

I am hammering out workshop formats based on Transit Lines & Touchpoints (my mobile feature prioritisation framework), looking at how I can use my OOUX Certified Strategist skills in consulting, and developing new IP for a Vision at Velocity workshop using futures methods to design software at the speed we seem to be moving these days.

I have a gut feeling I am more than capable with this venture, though I have always done this type of work from the inside. I suspect my perspective is even more powerful coming from the outside than if I were doing this work in house. I have a learning curve ahead of me.

I joked to my sister the other day that I feel like a domesticated animal. My crate has been thrown open and I’m standing on the threshold, afraid to leave. If we are honest, I have always been a bit feral and trying to behave well in a corporate cage not designed for me. I think the wilds outside the crate are my natural environment, and I believe this year of grad school and freelance work have been the equivalent of rehabilitation for returning a wounded animal to their native space. 

It still feels scary AF, but here we go.