Earlier this year we hosted Employ Yourself; a TreeShepherd course delivered in partnership with the Paddington Development Trust offering free advice and support to aspiring entrepreneurs.
We’re keeping in touch with Cherrelle Salmon, one of our inspiring graduates who is following her passion and has begun her own personal branding photography business.
In this, the second part of our case study Cherrelle fills us in on how she’s been getting on since attending Employ Yourself. (You can read the first here)
Thanks so much for making time for us and our members, can you tell us what all you’ve achieved since leaving the project in June?
“I have been so busy! I’ve been working on content creation for my business, I’ve been networking and generally getting to know more people all of which really helps to position myself in the community and beyond.
“I’ve been to some more business related workshops as well as a short course for portrait and people photography. As I learned on the course, It’s important to always keep learning, building and upskilling!
“I also had the pleasure of taking some event photos for two of Tree Shepherd’s Thrive Monthly Mini Markets and the Summer Networking Party.”
That all sounds amazing, you really have been busy! What are you currently working on? Where can we see your work? What does the future hold in store?
“I’ve got a couple of big projects coming up starting at the end of this year and continuing into 2023, I also have some other smaller shoots for individual clients. I’m really concentrating on building up my content for social media and my website, so that I have a greater visual offer for people.
“For the New Year I’m planning to promote flash sale packages to create more content, drum up more business and generally promote myself.
“I haven’t set up spaces for this work yet, as it’s still under construction. But watch this space. In the meantime people can follow me on Instagram to stay in the loop of my journey and check out some of my personal work. @cherrysees”
Have your achievements exceeded your original goal? How do you feel that your training has benefited you?
“Oh yes for sure. I came in with some ideas about running my business before the course, but I was unsure of what exactly to do with that info. The course helped me to prioritize, focusing on the important things in the right order and getting things started on a solid foundation- It’s now all falling into place.
“I have to say that my confidence has really increased. The vision for my business is clear and I’m really excited about what the future has in store!
“Even though the course ended a few months back I still feel very much like I can reach out if I have any questions, or just need a bit of support. That is one of the best things really, just because the course ended the support doesn’t.”
Any words to those who may be considering joining a Tree Shepherd course?
“Do it! You will be pleasantly surprised. You have nothing to lose, but everything to gain. The support and knowledge you receive is amazing. The staff are great. Take a chance on yourself today. It’s the best thing you could ever do for yourself. Tap into your unique potential. You got this!”
Make sure to keep an eye out over the coming months as we document (and celebrate!) Cherrelle’s story as a small business owner right here on TreeShepherd.org.uk.
If you’d like to find out more about the Employ Yourself course, over on our website we have blog posts that can give you all the details of what you can expect to gain by attending. To find out more about the services and support that Tree Shepherd offers, you can contact us here. Alternatively, have a look at our website which is full of useful resources and is updated regularly to include all upcoming events and courses