WordPress, the Community and Your Mental Health - WordCamp Bristol 2019
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Back in 2009 I discovered the power of WordPress. In 2012 I met the WordPress community. In 2016 I relied on the community! Let’s have an honest discussion about the challenges of running your WordPress business. Building your own business, no matter what size, can be one of the most rewarding, satisfying and freeing experiences you’ve ever encountered. It can also be one of the most terrifying, isolating and lonely roads to take. Having successfully started, developed and sold businesses, Dan has first hand experience of both the positive and negative impacts on his mental health. Dan will talk candidly about some of his experiences and giving you some insight into his decision to launch the charity: WP&UP. WP&UP supports & promotes positive mental health within the WordPress community.
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WordPress, the Community and Your Mental Health - WordCamp Bristol 2019
- 1. @WPandUPWPandUP.org This talk will cover mental health as a topic Sponsored by:
- 6. @WPandUPWPandUP.org Image Credit: Silicon Valley, HBO Sponsored by:
- 9. Hi, I’m Dan @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 10. @WPandUP @WPandUPWPandUP.org “ #WordPress and Up ” Sponsored by:
- 12. HTML CSS PHP JavaScript Photoshop Illustrator UX UI Version Control DevOps Work Flows Continuous Integration - Corporation Tax - VAT - PAYE - National Insurance - Tax Returns - Accountancy Software - Marketing - Social | Email | Offline | Outbound - Inbound | Direct | Content - Stakeholder Expectations - Project Management - Content Production - Data Controller - Security Adviser @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 13. No one said it would be _this_ hard… @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 14. @WPandUPWPandUP.org Image Credit: Movie Pilot Sponsored by:
- 16. Something had to change is changing @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 20. To support & promote positive mental health within the the WordPress community @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 22. A big to our volunteers @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 24. - Skills Health - Business Health - Physical Health - Mental Health @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 30. @WPandUPWPandUP.org and Your Mental Health… Sponsored by:
- 31. The cost of mental health care England 2026: £88,450,000,000 @WPandUPWPandUP.org [Source: Kings Fund – Paying the Price] Sponsored by:
- 32. 3,010 self-employed web designers & developers diagnosed with a mental health related illness **UK only** @WPandUPWPandUP.org [Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care & ONS] Sponsored by:
- 33. Average cost of therapy: £91 per session @WPandUPWPandUP.org [Source: Time With] Sponsored by:
- 36. 92 hours in meetings @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 37. 792 hours on support calls @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 39. 988 hours donated @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 40. 1,224 hour event @WPandUPWPandUP.org Sponsored by:
- 46. Thank You @WPandUPWPandUP.org Dan Maby dan@wpandup.org Emoji icons supplied by EmojiOne Sponsored by:
Editor's Notes
- If mental health as a topic is a trigger I want to offer this as an opportunity to leave [PAUSE] Back in 2009 I discovered the power of WordPress. In 2012 I met the WordPress community. In 2016 I relied on the community!
- Backup video: https://youtu.be/NKt4RMlSTYU **NOTES FOR LIVE CAPTIONS TEAM** Unusual words/phrases: WP&UP #PressForward #WPLDN (WordPress London Meetup)
- I have a background in Strategic business management. Self employed for 22 years And in that time have I’ve always built or worked with teams around me. My personal WordPress journey starts back around 2005, I needed a way to get my business online. After testing a number of other open-source platforms I came across WordPress and, as they say, never looked back!
- After a successful exit from my business at the time, around 2009 I decided a change of career path was needed My focus was to be digital. I started freelancing and building sites for friends, and friends of friends. This evolved over time and I found myself becoming more dedicated to WordPress as a platform to build a company upon. This later became Blue 37, the digital agency I still run today.
- Around 2012 I found myself wanting to connect with more likeminded people. I was aware of the community around WordPress through social platforms but I assumed (wrongly) it was predominately US based back then. I then stumbled across Meetup and discovered there was a London based WordPress event, founded by Keith Devon, the event was open to all. So I signed up and headed over for my first WordPress event. At the time I was an IT director for a medical association.
- So I arrived at my first meetup, looked around and quickly realized I was the only the only person in the room wearing a suit and tie! I felt so out of place, but the welcome I received was second to none! I instantly felt like I was a part of something.
- At that very event, the first WordPress event I'd ever attended, Keith asked if anyone was up for supporting WPLDN with him. In a room full of strangers, I stuck my hand up and we chatted after. This was the beginning of my journey with the WordPress community
- Since then I've gone on to lead the WordPress London Meetup, I’ve also volunteered, organiseed, spoken at and lead WordCamps, WordCamp London being the most recent. I’ve supported independent WordPress Contributor Days [MENTION YESTERDAYS CD] I’ve also run free workshops throughout the UK.
- My time in and around the community has enabled me to speak with a lot of individuals, as business owners, freelancers and employees of both small and large businesses.
- Early 2014 I created a new Twitter handle: @WPandUP I felt the name presented a positive connotation, to support an issue I was noticing within the community. [PAUSE] As a small business owner myself, I understand the challenges, the highs, the lows and the impact all this can potentially have on an individuals mental health. The seed for WP&UP had been planted But it wasn't until 2016 that the true impact and need for mental health support within our community truly hit home for me personally.
- I’ve been blessed to call my wife not only my my best friend but also my business partner. Together we ran our digital agency Blue 37. However, with no other source of income to our household, the pressure was on.. This was the first time my wife and I had worked together and I struggled to separate business with our personal lives. But that wasn’t the only challenge… As a small business owner I was having to learn new skills, often ones that had little, or even nothing to do with my passion Does any of this look familiar to you?
- HTML- CSS PHP JavaScript Photoshop Illustrator UX UI Version Control DevOps Work Flows Continuous Integration Most of this was around my passion, how about we now throw in…
- As a small business owner / freelancer / remote worker the pressures placed upon us can mount up! No one said it would be _this_ hard… [PAUSE] Having struggled earlier in my life with addiction and all the accompanying mental health issues, associated with the need to compensate and self medicate. I started to recognise the dark cloud that was growing over me.
- I made the mistake of thinking "I'll be OK, I can handle this. I’m strong". By late 2016 I simply couldn't. I was looking for a way out. My marriage was failing, relationships with friends and family where strained and I couldn't see a way forward.
- In early 2017 I traveled to India for a break and digital detox. During this trip my wife and I decided to sell part of the business and change tactics. I decided to dedicate my time to WP&UP I wanted to bring a service to the WordPress community that I knew was needed by at least one person… me.
- I’ve given similar talks to this in the past and this slide used to read: “something *HAD* to change” But I’m happy to say, something *IS CHANGING*
- [PAUSE] The community has been so important to me Without it I wouldn’t have the people in my life today that I refer to as friends However I needed more…
- So please say hello to WP&UP From that seed planted in 2014 WP&UP was now starting to make sense to me and becoming a thing.
- 1179 663 This number is significant (24th) Late August 2018 we got this number It took a team of WP&UP volunteers nearly 6 months to get that number [ANY GUESSES?] This number… is our registered charity number As a registered charity WP&UP has a mission…
- Our Mission : to support and promote positive mental health within the the WordPress community
- Together we can #PressForward [pause] We’re maintaining an open policy with the development of WP&UP You can read our constitution, business plan and policies at https://docs.wpandup.org/ [pause] You can also join the conversations to help shape WP&UP in our Slack team wpandup.org/slack To date WP&UP has provided practical support through funding individuals of the greatest need and by providing companionship and mentorship for many community members.
- I still run an agency that keeps me very much working with WordPress but my focus has changed and we're building something with a much wider, more positive focus. Since late 2017 a growing team of volunteers have come forward to support the efforts of WP&UP. I want to say a big personal thank you to each of them! [PAUSE]
- We’re now in the process of developing four Health Hubs. Mental health related illnesses can manifest from many core issues. Through the work done to-date at WP&UP we’ve come to realise there are four key areas of support for WordPress focused business owners
- The WP&UP Health Hubs will provide education, training and support via the Skills Health Hub Business Health Hub Physical Health Hub Mental Health Hub The overarching focus of WP&UP is mental health, the hubs allow us to focus attention on the areas of most need.
- Training, education and mentorship The Skills Health Hub supports those that recognise they have a skills gap If it’s impacting their mental health negatively, we can advise and support.
- Business mentor program, free training. The Business Health Hub is designed to support the WordPress business community. Our community is made up of hundreds of thousands of small businesses just like yours.
- Accountability, exercise, health advise There’s a direct coloration between your physical health and your mental health. Our Physical Health Hub is about supporting and educating.
- For me.. The big one. What’s the point in doing anything that prevents you from being you? The Mental Health Hub is there for anyone that recognises the need to support their mental health positively. People in tech need to focus on healthy minds and healthy bodies; to write healthy code and create a healthy business
- Reducing social isolation for solo-business owners, freelancers and distributed team employees is a key focus for WP&UP. My own personal need to seek likeminded people back in 2012 has lead to the development of WP&UP. The team of volunteers are now running events, across the UK, every single week. We're in discussions to support our first events overseas and have a number of new events planned for the coming months. If you're interested in starting, or need help with an existing meetup, then please do reach out to us. We'll happily discuss ways to create a sustainable, community events in your local area.
- The team of volunteers are doing amazing things to help their fellow peers, friends and co-workers. But, as often is the case, we need to do more…
- [a Kings Fund study – Paying The Price] Sets the total projected cost for mental health care in England for 2026 at £88.45 billion. In 2007 this figure was £48.6 billion. Loss of earnings due to Mental Health related illness is projected at a staggering £41 billion in the UK during 2026.
- Currently 4.3% of the UK self-employed workforce are diagnosed with a mental health related illness That’s equivalent to a little over 3,000 of our self-employed colleges throughout the UK only, are struggling with mental ill health. Because they’re self-employed they often don’t have a professional support network to turn to. These figures also don’t include employed individuals and only represent those who have taken steps to seek medical advice from a professional…
- The cost of therapy can vary according to a number of different factors. Time with a Psychologists is currently costing an average of £91 a session in the UK. It’s important to remember that training and cost don’t necessarily = a better therapist. An average session with a psychotherapist will cost you £55 and a counsellor on average will charge you £45 per session. In fact, the science says the most important determining factor in the success of therapy is the relationship you have with your therapist.
- So now what? A little over 12 months ago the group of individuals that are now make up the board of trustees for WP&UP got together to work through our ideas, passions and desire to support the community. It’s been a busy twelve months…
- We now have a team of 26 volunteers: - 3 trustees - 6 advisors - 8 event organisers - 9 supoprters
- As a team of Trustees we’ve met for a total of 92 hours or put differently; we’ve spent 11 ½ days in meetings If you’ve ever tried to register a charity, you’ll know where those days have gone! All references to “days” are calculated on an 8 hour working day.
- Support calls… A huge 792 hours of support calls have been delivered. All of this was delivered un-funded by volunteers, imagine what we can do when we’re fully funded!
- 925 people have registered to attend a WP&UP event. We run events weekly and we’d encourage all members of the community to join, support or run a local events. But I don’t need to tell you that… you’re here!
- Volunteers have donated a staggering 988 hours of their time. This has allowed us to develop skeletal services and raise awareness of the need to support mental health within our community.
- Event organisers have donated a total of 1,224 hours to deliver events across the UK.
- Total time donated to deliver WP&UP services comes in at an incredible 3,302 hours or 413 working days in the last twelve months! All of this time has been unpaid, voluntary work and without you the WordPress community, we wouldn’t be able to deliver these services. So to all of you, a thank you
- I’ve said it already but it’s important enough to say again… [CASE STUDY] – in recent days I’ve personally taken calls from individuals suffering with suicidal thoughts, related to challenges within their WordPress businesses. Time has been dedicated to them, to be someone they can be open with. Unfortunately there are many more people suffering silently… Together we can #PressForward
- We're currently seeking further funding to support a team of staff to develop these services that will ultimately be available to a global community. We're looking to work with strategic partners that will both support and benefit from WP&UP's mission. If that's you or your company we'd love to hear from you. [PAUSE] I've given a number of talks on the subject of mental health within our community and every time I'm humbled by the response and following conversations. There’s a need for more open and honest discussions about our mental health.
- Sponsors GreenGeeks - web hosting that’s faster, scalable and eco-friendly Sign up for a GreenGeeks account and you will have a positive energy footprint on the environment as they replace, with wind power credits, 3 times the amount of energy your website will use. Supporters WPMU DEV – your WordPress toolkit Motional - Measuring and Improving Emotional Health and Well-being Pragmatic – The UK WordPress agency for enterprise projects
- It’s currentyl Mental Health Awareness Week here in the UK (It’s also Mental Health Awareness Month in the US) I’d like to invite you to head over to this URL now I won’t be offended when you all stare down at your phones This will take you through to the WordPress Community Mental Health and Well-being Survey 2019 It’s completely anonymous and should take you only 2-3 minutes to complete If you’ve been to the WP&UP stand out there you may have already done it, if so thank you This will help shape the future of the mental health services delivered within our community
- I want to remind you, you’re not alone. It’s OK to not be OK. WP&UP is a community focused service, we’d love to hear from you if you think you could support, volunteer or even help fund the charity. If you’re suffering with any of the issues I’ve touched on, then please reach out: I’m Dan Maby I can be contacted at dan@wpandup.org Thank you for your time and I ‘m happy to answer any questions you may have?