A recent study of hundreds of workers revealed that job security, work-life balance, and being intellectually stimulated were the top three most important aspects of an employee’s job satisfaction (ranked even higher than money, power, and prestige).
For our team at Boldly, this comes as no surprise. The entire model of premium subscription staffing is built around these 3 pillars: The security of a W2 position, a flexible and remote schedule that offers unparalleled work/life balance, and diverse, impactful work with interesting and successful clients.
These values are perfectly personified in Nicole Elliott, a Boldly team member for the past 2 years, a dynamic business support specialist and go-to jack-of-all-trades for her four clients.
Working Boldly with Nicole
In this series, we pull back the curtain so you can get a glimpse of the new way to work. We spent some time with Nicole to find out what a day in the life of a Boldly marketing/business support specialist looks like:
Meet Nicole:
Nicole Elliott:
Business Support Specialist
Location
Gorgeous Colorado Springs, CO in the foothills of the Rockies
Length of time at Boldly:
1 year 9 months
Professional Experience: 10 years
Immersed in the Diverse
The diverse range of client industries Nicole supports might be intimidating to some, including: Proptech, eCommerce, luxury vintage watch sales, and software. But because of her love for learning, this diversity is actually Nicole’s favorite part of working for Boldly.
“My clients are in radically different fields and it’s fantastic,” she explains. “I love not being pigeonholed into one thing like I was in my previous career; I’ve gotten the chance to learn about so many industries, software, and things I’ve never done before. One of my clients allows me to listen to his podcast interviews on billable time to immerse myself in his industry — I’m so appreciative of that.”
It’s not just the industries that range either, Nicole’s tasks and projects for each client are as different as their fields. A true jack-of-all-trades, Nicole’s day includes everything from running blog campaigns and reaching out to influencers, to customer service, to travel planning, to scheduling meetings and organizing personal schedules, to luxury sales, to personal shopping, and even bookkeeping — and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
“I am a fast learner. You just have to find what works for your clients — and if it works it works ya’ know!”
Needless to say, staying intellectually stimulated during her workday is not an issue for Nicole. So how about the other pieces of the puzzle? With a crazy to-do list, how does Nicole maintain work-life balance? We asked her to give us some insight into her day.
A Day in the life of Nicole:
6:30am – I wake up – I am NOT a morning person, but I’m glad this job forces me to be one – it gives me some accountability to get up and get my day started. It helps that getting ready just means I can walk about 5 feet from my bedroom into my office.
7 am to 8:20- I have my first client call of the day where I walk one of my clients through all his upcoming appointments and priorities – I get him set up for success for the next 24 hours!
8:20-9 am – I drop off my kids at school. I have a 9 and 11-year-old and they currently attend two different schools. I love this time of the day. My children and I sing,dance, and chat in the car, it’s great connection time.
9 am – 2:45 pm – This time is reserved for client work. There is A LOT to get done so I have to stay very focused. I work 5.5 to 6.5 hours per day – so I have to use my time wisely and stay super productive. Sometimes I like to go work outside and enjoy the beautiful Colorado weather (and my two dogs enjoy it too!).
2:45 pm – 3:30 pm – Pick up time for the kids! I usually have to park and wait so I bring a book, use it as social media time, catch up on work or socialize with the other parents.
3:30pm – 7:30pm – Family time! We hang out and take care of chores, play board games together, watch football (my daughter and I are most into it!) go hiking (we’re 20 minutes away from world-class hikes here!) or we play World of Warcraft all together as a group! We also have dinner as a family, I try to cook a home-cooked meal every night!
7:30 pm – Bedtime for kids! We usually spend a few minutes one-on-one together with each kid, and then I read to them each night. Currently, we’re reading A Little Princess out loud.
8 pm is Workout time – unlike a lot of people I work best in the evening and I’ve found that this is the best time for me to workout. I jog on our treadmill while watching Dr. Who or do easy strength training like push-ups, sit-ups, and lunges
9 pm – Relax and reconnect with my husband! We hang out, watch things together, or do our own thing together – like him looking at memes while I read. I love reading and try to do it a little each night before bed.
10:30 pm – Lights out! I’m one busy lady so getting enough rest each night is super important.
Flexible Stability
Prior to joining Boldly, Nicole was an avid blogger and active brand influencer for 10 years, both working for herself and as a contractor for other companies. But the pillars of job satisfaction and security were unfortunately elusive.
“I was running campaigns for companies like Coca-Cola and Hershey as a contractor for a small company. Then one day, they were sold to a bigger company that decided they no longer wanted to use contractors. Overnight, 40 of us were out.”
“Sometimes I had a lot of work, other times, I didn’t have a lot of work, and that type of schedule became exhausting.”
With Boldly, Nicole enjoys a steady monthly schedule with predictable client hours and pay, while keeping the freedom to structure her own day.
“If the kids have a dentist or a doctor appointment, or even if I just need to run to Starbucks for an afternoon pick-me-up, it’s no big deal, I can do that.”
The importance of this flexible stability became apparent to Nicole recently when attending her daughter’s softball game.
“The game was at 4:30, and it was only me and one other parent there. I realized that none of the other parents were able to make it due to work. This other parent that was with me had specifically requested time off to make the game. I felt bad saying I had already worked my full-day and can always work my schedule around the games!”
Boldly and Nicole: A Natural Fit
For Nicole, being the go-to person for her clients comes naturally. She was very intentional before choosing this career path, which helps to explain why she’s so successful.
“I did a lot of soul-searching when I left my previous job trying to decide what is really going to make me happy and keep me motivated. I am an ENFJ personality type – I get most of my satisfaction from helping other people shine, I am fine being the center of attention sometimes, but I most appreciate helping others become the center of attention!”
“I love my clients, I enjoy working with all of them, and I know they need me!”
#OnlyatBoldly
One unique aspect of working with Boldly is that clients are screened just as intensely as our team members, which helps to ensure that our team will always be working with clients who match our values of kindness, respectfulness, and appreciation of a job well done.
For Nicole, this type of consistent appreciation is something she lacked in previous companies and something that truly surprised her. She believes this deep-rooted culture of appreciation is something found #OnlyatBoldly.
“It’s just not the norm! All of my clients have gone out of their way both physically and verbally to show me or tell me how much they appreciate me. I’ve received so many thank yous from the company also. I have bent over backwards in former jobs and can’t remember ever receiving a thank you. I can’t ever remember feeling so appreciated.”
Mutually Beneficial
Boldly knows that when our team is happy, they thrive. And when our team members thrive, so do our clients and company. That’s why we put so much effort into maintaining an award-winning culture. We think Nicole puts it best:
“It’s so funny when I finally found Boldly I said, ‘This is exactly what I need! I love this!’ And I think (the hiring team) was saying, “She is exactly what we need! We love her!’”
Exceeding standards in job security, work-life balance, and intellectual stimulation – that’s what working Boldly is all about.
