“My clients respect me and treat me as an equal”

“I used to work in a private school. I was an admin assistant at first, then I worked in the maintenance department. I liked my job. It was down to earth. It was my job to make sure my colleagues had a functioning working environment. I left because of the new boss. She didn’t understand what we did and was incapable of showing any recognition. I was used to my boss acknowledging my accomplishments. The new one went around criticising me and hogging the limelight. I ended up going to work with a knot in my stomach. When my employer offered me an escape route, I wasn’t sure. At 48 I was already a “senior” and feared I might find it hard to find another job. But I left because it became unbearable. At first, I started a freelance business selling admin services and private lessons and I moved on to cleaning, which I enjoy. I started working for companies that gave me work in return for a commi