Shelly Fausett talked about the way remote work is impacting American rural areas through the hand of her project SoloWorks Cibola.
She is an inspiration for the way she approaches life and how she transformed a difficult personal situation into her strength to change the lives of so many people.
This is my favourite quote from the interview:
“If somebody gets training or a certification or a degree but they feel they don’t have the opportunity to use it, they will leave their community to go find a job. One thing we try to do is to give them options so they don’t need to leave and stay in their homes”.
Shelly is the Director of SoloWorks Cibola, the first SoloWorks Center piloted by CELab (Community Economics Lab) in 2016. Shelly has a diverse background across marketing, PR, career development, curriculum and training development, fundraising and various other fields. Her contribution to CELab is as a Principal Investigator for SoloWorks program development and execution.
Show Notes:
01:30 – Shelly mix of education and lifelong education
03:45 – What makes a good press release?
03:50 – How did Shelly start working remotely?
06:10 – How to find the first freelancing gig?
06:45 – How Shelly found her first freelancing gig?
09:00 – What is Soloworks and how is it helping local rural communities with remote work?
10:30 – Why is New Mexico struggling economically? From Uranium capital of the world to unemployment
12:10 – Demographics of the program
13:00 – Shelly system to find the right remote job for the right person. Use case
16:30 – Employer partners and support systems
17:45 – The power of education in changing people carriers
19:00 – How to keep people accountable while learning online
20:15 – The importance of removing any blocks to remote work in small communities
21:55 – How remote work is changing local communities in rural areas
23:55 – A success history in New Mexico
25:20 – Why did Shelly embrace a project outside her comfort zone to help people?
30:10 – How can you have an impact in your local community?
34:00 – The power of Coworking spaces in rural areas
36:30 – Are people moving back to rural areas?
37:20 – How can rural communities attract remote workers?
39:50 – Shelly inspirational 10-year vision
42:00 – How to fund a local social project
Useful Links:
Connect with Shelly Fausett!