with Britt Reints
Forget the 9 to 5; Full Time, All the Time is a blog about the mobile working life - when you have the freedom to work from anywhere and the responsibility of always having your smartphone turned on. Britt Reints works as a freelance writer while traveling fulltime in an RV with her husband and two kids. She explores balancing real-life bills with an unconventional work life, and finding time to maintain relationships with family and friends.
You can also find Britt at InPursuitOfHappiness.net.
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One of the biggest advantages of working remotely - flexibility - is also one of the things that makes working on the road so difficult. Like many people, I love routine and am most productive when I can quickly get into the flow of creating. Airport lounges and unpredictable hours can make slipping into a working frame of mind a slower process, which equals less work done on the road.
Unfortunately, I live on the road right now. All of my work is done from a “remote” location and so I’m constantly adjusting to a new environment. However, some weeks require more flexibility than others, like when I’m on a short business trip or press tour. These trips are loaded with travel, meetings, tours, and very little downtime. The downtime I do have is usually spent at an airport gate or on an airplane, or in a hotel room after 9 o’clock at night. Of course, I have my laptop with me in these places and can almost always access the internet — so what’s the problem?
The reality is that I can almost never write in an airport and I have a very difficult time concentrating late in the evening. Afternoon “free time” between afternoon tours and group dinners is equally useless for me. I do my best work first thing in the morning and up until about 2pm. But, you know, life is about adjusting.
Right?
Not always.
Over the last year I’ve had to accept that I will never get as much work done as I’d hoped during business trips. I may get caught up on my email, but I’m not going to do a lot of problem solving or creative thinking. I can plan to work during off hours, but I’ll only be setting myself up for failure and leave myself racing to meet deadlines when I return.
I’ve stopped trying to work on the road. Instead, I work like a crazy woman before my trips to get ahead on deadlines and schedule myself extra work time after the trip. I know a lot of people who are able to squeeze more productivity from their carry-on bags, but I’m just not one of them. The next best solution for me is to learn to work within my personal limitations.
Do you get a lot of work done on business trips? What adjustments have you made to accommodate your personal limitations?
I work much better in the morning, so I always factor that in. I also know that I will not work when I travel (even if it is for work). I may brainstorm or make notes, but it would be rare for me to sit down and really work.
Megan | October 5th, 2011 at 11:46 am