Have you got a workplace contract? I don’t mean the type of contract that spells out your working hours, salary and the dos and don’ts of business matters, but a personal contract with your boss. A new school of thought believes that we should now all be ‘contracting’ between managers and employees – essentially writing an agreement about the ways in which you will work together.

There are no set rules on what a contract should cover, but good ideas include how you like to be managed and receive contact or feedback (for example, are you a face-to-face person or better with an email to digest), your important boundaries (eg ‘I hate to be touched’ or ‘I’m going to struggle with out of hours emails’) or expectations around how tasks are delivered to you (in writing or verbally, following a discussion). In return, the manager lays out their needs, what they expect from you (if missing a deadline is a dealbreaker we all want to know that upfront) or perhaps their own working style (I send emails at night; I don’t expect you to reply). It’s a grown-up conversation that allows both manager and employee to have agency to work at their best and really understand their similarities and differences.

I can’t even begin to imagine how many workplace problems, toxic behaviours, disputes or miserable relationships might have been solved by having this one simple conversation from day one. Not a top-down ‘this is what you have to do for me’ chat but the type of conversation where you learn that if you give someone negative feedback and they go quiet for a day, they’re not sulking – they’re digesting, and it’s better to give them space.

So my advice to you: if you’re a manager, get contracting. If you’re an employee who wants a contract, broach the idea with your boss by asking them how they’d like to work with you. As workplaces wake up to the idea that one-size-fits-all employment is something to be confined to the history books (oh, how we’ll laugh when we look back and think of the bonkers way we were all expected to work as one homogenous blob… think battery-farmed employees) a contract is a brilliant first step for making work really work for you. 

At Stylist HQ last week, we had a great session with Sarah Ellis, co-founder of Amazing If. She talked to the team about the power of having a learning mindset and encouraged us to embrace curiosity. This was just a few days after our three-day event, Stylist Live, where Meena Alexander and Lisa Smosarski delivered an excellent chat about Meena’s book, How To Be Curious. So it’s been a week of mulling over the concept of curiosity and why it’s so brilliant. I’m very pleased about this, given that I am naturally a very nosy person.

One thing Ellis recommended was taking this test to discover your ‘curiosity profile’. It’s 20 or so questions about what interests you and engages your brain, and at the end, you’ll get some fascinating insight into how best to tap into your curiosity. I’m an ‘unconventional thinker’ who’s ‘intellectually hungry’, and can adapt to new situations. So this week I’m dedicating some time to satisfying that need by delving deep into a new research project. How about you? 

Wondering how to turn your side hustle into your main hustle? Have you always dreamt of starting a business but never found the time to get started?

Our upcoming Stylist Network event, in collaboration with QuickBooks, is exactly what you need to kickstart your journey. Join us on Thursday 28 November at the Ham Yard Hotel, where Stylist’s editorial director Lisa Smosarski will lead an inspiring discussion with a panel of successful entrepreneurs. With their wealth of experience, they’ll share invaluable insights on how to transform your business dreams into a thriving reality.

We’ll dive deep into everything from financial planning and funding to evaluating business ideas and setting clear goals. Expect to leave with actionable tips, proven processes, and plenty of motivation to begin taking the first steps toward making your dream business a reality.