I Love Running.

I used to run A LOT. Not for my fitness or for any particular ‘record beating’, but for my head – Forest Gump styly – ‘I just kept on running’…

Becoming a mum stopped that – time poor, guilt ridden and after a while zero motivation - I was always on the look-out for opportunities to squeeze a run in to my day. So when a piece of work came up that could incorporate just that, I was excited.

The job looked good..

• Standard hours, 9am – 5pm

• Central London

• Full time for 2 months.

To make it work there was one train I would need to get - the 8.17am. Nursery opened at 8am and was a 15 minute walk from the station, so if I threw my daughter in (no niceties, no ‘did she sleep ok’ questions, kiss on the head before we get to the door for ultimate time efficiency), I could TOTALLY do it -because I could RUN!

In this perfect dream-like morning fantasy, I imagined myself as one of those ‘Do it all mum’s’; fit, healthy, career drive effortlessly running to work. However, what if it went wrong? the bus was late, the little one wouldn’t get in her car seat, I couldn’t find my trainers or maybe just the fact that this plan would turn me in to a sweaty Forest Gump and make me want to run, run, run away.

Commuting is one of the main things people have highlighted as the reason they want flexible working. In my FLEX survey 75% of people are putting ‘Being able to manage wellbeing and mental health’ on top, closely followed by ‘reduced time / spend on commuting’. Being able to be flexible means you set your own rhythm which fits around your life, reducing your stress levels and managing your juggle. PLUS;

-       An average person spends 9 days a year commuting

-       Research shows it costs businesses 5.3 billion on lost productivity.

-       Less commuting is better for the planet with the reduction of carbon emissions.

So with wasted time an money - flexible working seems like a no brainer. By defining ‘working core hours’ and letting people choose their start and finish times, incorporating virtual meetings, cloud-based tools and having people working from home or in co-working spaces, we could build a happier and more productive workforce.

So with this all in mind - I decided not to go for the crazy commute job in the end. I decided to prioritise me. And after my school ‘commute’ today I decided to get those trainers on anyway. I ran home, because I could, because I am working flexibly – better for me, my family, my head.

Tell me how you’d love it to be by filling out the survey. Join the FLEX appeal and maybe you can ride the Ghost Train too!