"Free people are dangerous people. We tell a white man, a pink man, a purple woman exactly what they can do with their job because we know that we have choices, options, and preferences that deserve to be respected.
"We free folk live as though we are all over 40; we act like we've earned the right not to give a good goddamn."
Such are the words of a dedicated adjunct professor who walked away from the work she loved, teaching literature to undergraduates, due to persistent disrespect from superiors, inherent job insecurity, lack of benefits, and the knowledge that her salary would never be enough--even as a full-time academic--to comfortably live and pay off her six-figure student loans.
Commuting 24 miles one way to the latest adjunct position, Dr. Niama Williams knew she'd had enough when her dean and department chair descended upon her, citing lack of commitment to her 8 a.m. course.
"I was going to bed every night nauseous I was so tired, but no one seemed to care. I'd made arrangements to give up a lovely apartment and a leasing office that had indulged me in every way possible to move to an apartment 15 minutes away from my then-new job.
"It didn't seem to matter. I missed my 8 a.m. class twice during those first two weeks, and that was all they cared about.
"I told them that I was doing my best, and if my best was not good enough, they needed to make a decision. They refused, and in the end, I had to make the decision.
"And I chose to be free."
Within a week and a half, Dr. Williams registered her enterprise, Blowing Up Barriers Workshops, with the state of Pennsylvania through its "incredibly easy and helpful" OBRI site after a 5-hour conversation in which her bank, PNC, outlined everything she needed to do to begin business as a sole proprietor.
"I remain immensely grateful to Liz, whose last name I never obtained, and Ms. Terrilin Cunningham of Merchant Services. They were on the phone with me almost the entire day, and when I hung up, I had six pages of notes and clear direction as to how to begin my dream."
Her workshops, geared toward "the career-discontented or those afraid to pursue their dreams" encompass 8 weeks of drawing, creative writing, meditation and group support as participants envision, focus, and make deliberate moves toward "attaining the fully imagined life."
The workshops are only the first phase of the business; Dr. Williams also plans to publish four manuscripts via Lulu.com with an eventual “commercial”
“I’ve never been known for my patience, and traditional publishing just takes way too long to get back to you with an answer. I’ve got ten poetry manuscripts collecting dust, a short story manuscript that has been ready for a year, am in the middle of writing one novel and have a clear idea for another. I can’t wait a year or more for a publishing decision.”
Imminently ready for the necessary marketing blitz she must create on her own, Dr. Williams has spent two days creating her first of three brochures: one for the Blowing Up Barriers workshops, one for the published manuscripts, and the last for the third aspect of her business, affiliate programs.
“When I discovered that VistaPrint was indeed interested in the fact that I had posted a news article on my website about my positive experience with their company, and that they would pay me for directing people to their site, I was hooked.”
At first reluctant to place ads on her Internet home, Dr. Williams found the banners offered by Staples, Netflix, Linens-N-Things, the Apple Store, VistaPrint and Skype visually pleasing and a welcome asset that livened up her text-heavy site. “I’m now waiting for approval from Target; if I get clearance to add them to my page, I’ll be in heaven.”
Dr. Williams doesn’t accept just any company as a possible candidate for space. “I only consider companies with whom I have—personally and successfully—
Personal experience weighs heavily with her. Dr. Williams is delighted to have a firm commitment from Larry Robin of Robin's Bookstore and the Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center for two sets of "Killing the Muckraker: Drawing Your Way to Power," both running concurrently and beginning the week of October 26th, 2006.
"Larry Robin offered the use of his store's second floor on amazingly generous terms. If I can bring more traffic into the wonderful history that is his store while freeing people from self-imposed chains, I will indeed be living my dream."
