By side hustles, we mean working on any other professional or paid jobs outside of your work at Talented. It’s not a black and white topic. There are one-time gigs, other pursuits, long-term entrepreneurial ambitions or opportunities that help you grow and make life interesting. At Talented, we believe in nurturing creativity, autonomy, and passion projects. We know that working here can inspire all kinds of ideas—some that live within our walls, and some that live outside them. We want to support that. But we also want to make sure that professional endeavours outside of Talented don’t create conflicts of interest or affect your time, dedication, or performance at Talented. So, it’s a delicate balance, and we want to be crystal clear on the boundaries.

What’s OK:

• Helping people you know: Taking on a small design, website, or writing task - paid or unpaid - for someone you know, once you’ve emailed your team and Talent Experience lead.
• Non‑overlapping side business: Running a small venture entirely different from your Talented role - up to 10 hours/month, as long as performance here stays strong.
• Light advisory/board roles: Up to a few hours/month, with no conflict of interest and Talented work always prioritized.
• Volunteer or pro‑bono work: Occasional causes you care about, provided it’s outside work hours and doesn’t become an ongoing daily responsibility.
• Personal creative projects: Anything that fuels your growth, so long as it doesn’t compete with Talented or touch our clients or resources.
• Using your own time, equipment, and resources. Side work should happen outside of Talented’s work hours, and without using the company’s tools or software.

What crosses the line:

• Work for competitors: Any part‑time or full‑time role in our industry or adjacent spaces without prior discussion.
• Consulting/freelancing conflicting brands: Advising or working for clients similar to or overlapping with Talented’s roster.
• Day‑time side commitments: Projects that require real‑time responsiveness during your Talented work hours.
• Using Talented IP: Leveraging our strategies, briefs, templates, or branding for external gain.
• Pitching our partners: Approaching clients, prospects, or vendors you met here for outside work.
• Using Talented’s name, branding, or associations to boost an external project’s credibility even casually, isn’t something we’re comfortable with.

Checklist for taking on external projects:

1. Disclosure & Email Process

Talk to or Email both your team lead and the Talent Experience lead before starting any side gig, including:

• Nature of work
• Client/Brand name
• Time commitment (est. hours/month)
• Overlap risks (if any)

Proceed once you have their acknowledgment.

2. Self‑Assessment Rubric

Before sending your email, run through this checklist:

1. Conflict: Does this overlap with any Talented client or project?
2. Capacity: Can I comfortably keep this under 10 hours/month?
3. Resources: Am I using only my own tools and time?

3. Learning & Celebration

• Quarterly Passion Project Showcase: Demo what you’ve learned and how it benefits our clients or culture.
• Normalize Failure: Share lessons from side gigs that didn’t pan out - every experiment is a data point.