For Frankie Tortora, her online community Doing It For The Kids (DIFTK) has always been and will always be about helping freelancers with kids feel less alone.
“It’s a killer combo having small children and working for yourself - both are isolating in different ways - and the ‘It takes a village to raise a child’ thing doesn’t really exist so much any more,” says Frankie (pictured above).
DIFTK – a community by and for parents who work freelance – acts as a new kind of village. It’s a place where there are no stupid questions, just a bunch of people eager to support each other as they muddle through the eternal juggle of raising children and being self-employed. Frankie, founder of DIFTK, is a Starling business customer.
Pivoting the business away from Facebook
Frankie, who works as a freelance graphic designer, had the idea for DIFTK while she was pregnant. At the time, she had all sorts of questions she didn't know how to answer: How much time should I take off? What statutory maternity pay am I entitled to? How do I manage ongoing client work?
“There were lots of blogs by people trying to sell you something or training courses for new mums starting businesses. But as a freelancer, I already had a business. I just wanted to speak to people who were also freelancers and parents.”