For me, one of the positives to come out of the repeated covid lockdowns were the changes in the way Britain works. It was the opportunity to adopt hybrid working, which, for most people, did not exist before covid. No more traipsing through the rush hour to a crowded workplace. Instead, we can now choose where to work. And get more done as we don’t waste time travelling. It is fortuitous that the lockdown came in the wake of technical developments, such as a ‘Zoom’ or ‘Teams’, which enables us to meet online instead of wasting half a day travelling through London. Before, we only had conference calls. It was also, during these tiresome lockdowns, that I was able to make my own office arrangements by renting pop-up desk-space at any of the dozens of Regus co-working centres which now exist across the UK. It was also a chance to network and meet other people from a range of disciplines. And surprisingly affordable.
At the moment, my workspace is a small box room at my home. It’s cramped, but I am kitted out with everything I would have if I worked and a proper office, including a large monitor screen, a laser printer and scanner. If it’s a sunny day, I can even take my work out into the back garden and set up my equipment. I love sitting under the palm tree. It provides a bit of shade so I can see the screen. I don’t have a secretary. Nor do most property professionals these days. But I don’t care. I still have the ability to dictate my work in volume using Microsoft voice-dictation. It’s why it’s only taken me an hour to write this piece. Some people find that my dictation disturbs them. But when I’m working at home that ain’t a problem.
Do I feel lonely? Nah! I don’t have time to feel lonely. There’s just too much going on in my life. Although I am already well past retirement age, I don’t want to retire. What else would I do? Walk a golf course with other retirees? No thank you. I’d rather do this. Although I’m still at the conveyancing sharp end, I love to write about what I do.
During June 2021, my book, Essential Law for Cemetery and Crematorium Managers became Amazon’s number one best-selling business-law book. Even if it was only for a few days. But although other books, including Legal Profession: is it for you? have also enjoyed significant success, not all my self-publications have sold as well as I would like. Usually, when a book doesn’t sell, it’s because of problems within the book itself. It is why I am currently working on a relaunch of a personal memoir, which I co-wrote with my partner, Farida J Manekshah, back in 2016. It was my first self-publication, and to be quite frank, I can quite understand why no-one wanted to buy it. But maybe things will be different with a comprehensive re-work of the text, a new title and an exciting professionally produced front cover. Yep! It’s all gonna change. Yes sirree. It’s all a learning curve and I’ll let you know as soon as it comes out.
In the meantime, please take a look at Legal Profession: is it for you? You don’t have to be a lawyer to enjoy reading it. Thank you.
BRUCE AND HOLLY 