Hello, we are Collaborahub! A community of South African freelancers. This is a guide to the ins and outs of our Hive Days.
Hive Days are part of our activities to provide opportunities for South African Freelancers to connect and network ( in a more casual and relaxed setting)
Here are some benefits of participating in Collaborahub’s Hive days.
1. Find community – Freelancing can be an isolating journey and sometimes virtual spaces like WhatsApp groups may not be enough to build community. There is value in meeting face to face as it creates stronger relationships. You are able to build more rapport and connect more via non verbal cues such as body language and facial expressions.
This was the main reason behind Collaborahub creating Hive Days so that South African freelancers can connect more deeply.
We strongly recommend safe and relaxed spaces like coffee shops and restaurants.
2. Sharing Knowledge & Resources – Our webinars were designed for this but they can be too formal and restricting for others.
Hive Days is a channel for freelancers to casually share knowledge and resources with each other. People tend to share more information when they are in more casual and relaxed settings like coffee meet-ups.
Our virtual webinars are more professional and people can be guarded about what they share. On the other hand, in restaurant or coffee set ups there is less evaluation leading to flowing conversations and openness.
If comfortable freelancers can offer glimpses into some of the projects they are working on and get advice, support and motivation.
3. Partnerships – Hive Days can lead to potential collaborations and partnerships. This is the heart of our brand as we aim for people to connect and work together.
There is a higher likelihood of meeting freelancers with complementary skillsets and this is fertile ground for collaborating on future projects and creating more income for yourself as a freelancer.
Another benefit is getting client referrals as sometimes South African freelancers deal with clients that fall outside their expertise. If your skillset fits then you can be able to access more business opportunities for yourself. Ever heard of ” your network is your net worth” . In person-meetings are great for creating a strong network.
However, meet ups can be challenging for some freelancers. Therefore, we are introducing Virtual Hive Days. At the time of the writing of this post ( 05/06/24) we have already hosted our first Virtual Hive Day which was a big success!
Virtual Hive Days have appeal because of the current times we live in. Remote work has scattered freelancers across South Africa, even far away from the main metropolitan areas such as Johannesburg and Capetown. Therefore, Virtual Hive Days allow people scattered across the country to connect even if it’s virtual. These virtual meet-ups have also have potential to rival the benefits of in person meet-ups so we also encourage members to join as well.
If you do not want to miss our Hive Days, join our WhatsApp here
If you want to connect with us professionally we are also on LinkedIn , follow us here