It’s not uncommon for me to be on an airplane on a Tuesday afternoon, on a conference call on a Saturday morning, and answering email late into the evening on any given day. One of my favorite things about my mobile lifestyle is that I’m not chained to a time clock or some antiquated schedule that dictates that business gets done from 9 to 5 on five select days of the week. One of my least favorite things, however, is that I seem to have lost my designated time off in the process.

I take my cell phone with me everywhere, allowing me to respond to emails and take phone calls even if I’m not sitting at a desk. I don’t have set hours during which clients or editors can contact me, which I hope makes up for the fact that I might be unavailable for several hours in the middle of a work day. It would be hypocritical of me to tell someone I won’t work on a Saturday, I think, if I also haven’t worked on a Thursday. I strive to make myself available as much as possible in order to make up for the times I’m not available and for the unpredictable nature of my schedule.
Read the rest of this entry

I work in the mornings.

This is just the way I’m wired, for whatever reason, and I’ve learned at 31 years old to embrace this little quirk. I get up, open the laptop, and get to work. When the work is done, the playing can commence.

Except, of course, when it doesn’t work that way.

Read the rest of this entry

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?

Read the rest of this entry

This is the last post I’ll write for Full Time, All the Time from the comfort of anything resembling an office. This is probably also the last week I can reasonably claim to work “full time.”

One week from today, my family and I are moving out of our suburban home and into a 24 foot travel trailer RV. For the next year, we’ll tow that portable house all over the United States with our old SUV, working and living in cities and campgrounds that promise free or cheap WiFi. My kids are calling it The Biggest Vacation Ever, but I won’t exactly be on vacation. I’ll still be working - although hopefully less than full time - because someone has to pay for the campground fees and cereal.

Things, they are a-changin’.

Read the rest of this entry

There’s a plethora of advice available on how to get ahead in your career. Whether you work for a Fortune 500 company or own your own one-woman-show, you can find tips on every magazine rack about how to climb higher and earn more.

But have you ever stopped to think if you really want to move up in your career?

Read the rest of this entry

I usually have a lot going on in my life. I’m a mother, wife, daughter, sister, and friend. I work. I travel and write for fun. I make sure to manage my health with a balanced diet, a little exercise, and adequate rest so as not to sink into the depths of depression. I have been known to cook a meal, wash a load of laundry, and clean a toilet or two when necessary.

No doubt about it; I’m busy.

But, isn’t everyone?

No, really. I’m asking. Because I don’t consider myself anymore busy than most people in today’s society -most of us wear multiple hats and juggle several responsibilities at the same time - and yet I’ve noticed lately that other people comment frequently on how busy I am.

Read the rest of this entry

I’ve been purging a lot of stuff from our family’s home and life recently. As most people who have gone through any kind of downsizing will tell you, it makes you stop and think a little bit about the value (or absence of value) of your stuff.

If you’d like to have a similar epiphany without getting rid of your house, try having a garage sale. Something about pricing your items for strangers really brings the idea of “value” into focus.

While part of this process for me has been learning about what I don’t want to spend money on anymore, the fact remains that I work for a living for a reason. I do still spend money. There are things I want to have and do, and that’s why I’m not hanging out in a tent in the woods somewhere living off the land.

Read the rest of this entry

I had to call my husband after he’d left for work and apologize for being such a - er - not nice person this morning.

I ended up hanging up on him about 15 minutes later.

I’ve had to apologize for my crankiness repeatedly over the last few weeks, and I wouldn’t blame my family if they were starting to doubt my sincerity. I really am sorry and I do intend to be less crabby in the future. Really.

But I’m running out of ways (and time) to relieve a boatload of excess stress right now.

Read the rest of this entry

I need some advice, and the fact that I even have to ask this question is embarrassing so I’m going to attempt to lessen the mortification with a little back-story justification.

Last week, I mentioned that I find myself compulsively checking email, Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites on my iPhone throughout the day. I don’t do it because I’m dying to know what is happening online, but rather because I am temporarily bored.

I check it during the commercial breaks of my favorite TV shows or during the opening credits of a movie we’re watching on DVD.

I check it between work projects.

I check it if I’m stuck in a waiting room, amusement park line, or multi-floor elevator ride.

It’s as if I don’t know how to just stop and be still for a few moments.

Read the rest of this entry

Three weeks ago, I wrote about my latest efforts to prevent email from taking over my day. In order to reduce the amount of time I spent dealing with email every day, I was going to try:

• Checking email twice a day
• Setting a timer when I check my email
• Not using GMail as my homepage
• Turning off all unnecessary notifications
• Setting all group emails to digest mode
• Unsubscribing

Has my brilliant plan worked? Have I tackled the sprawling time-suck monster that was my email inbox?

Partially.

Read the rest of this entry