Tis the Season … to be Busy
Wednesday, December 14th, 2011Holy cow, when will time slow down?
And when did it get to be mid December, with less than two weeks to go until Christmas?
I posted my last “update post” in mid September after having a whirlwind end to the summer, and since then I can’t even remember where the time has gone. I’m pretty sure the unaccounted for time can be attributed to being passed either at work, my consulting gig, getting projects done left and right around the house, or to my half marathon training!
It’s a good thing that I don’t go big doing presents and shopping, I don’t think I could handle the holidays if I had to spend them driving around and fighting for parking at the mall.
One new thing of note is that I’ve negotiated some working from home privileges which really works out nicely. Typically I’m home 2-3 days a week, which really adds [...]
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What Most Business Owners Don’t Understand (But Should Learn)
Tuesday, October 4th, 2011I’ve been pretty forthcoming here on Idealist Cafe when I’ve talked about my desire to free myself from the corporate world. I have also been fairly open about this in “real life” and even at work when talk to co-workers. I don’t see that there is any harm in letting people know that I have goals and aspirations that are different from the place I am currently in. I don’t think this makes where I am today or the capacity that I work in any less significant or meaningful, it just means that there are other things waiting for me down the line. To me life is an evolution and what may work for us one day may not work the next, and there is not anything wrong with that.
Well, (un)fortunately for me, the other day this information made it to my boss, but was delivered a bit differently than [...]
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Time flies when you’re having fun
Friday, September 16th, 2011It’s been an incredibly busy past month and a half.
Six states, three trips, two weddings. One website to add to my portfolio. Two new consulting gigs. And still working my full time job.
I’m ready for some down time. Unfortunately, I don’t know that I’ll have too much of it. The traveling has been fun but tiring, and the extra working has been sort of fun, sort of stressful, and sort of exciting. I’m working on saving a FYF (F*** You Fund), building a portfolio, and creating work that will enable me to transition away from my full time job and get me closer to living my dream of working when, where, and how I want to work.
It started with my trip to Cleveland, where I rented a car and drove two hours to Pennsylvania for my cousin’s wedding. It was a quick three day trip, I drove too many miles, [...]
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No shampoo, no soap, and other craziness
Monday, August 22nd, 2011A few months ago I first heard the phrase “No Poo”. Don’t worry, it’s probably not what you think. Or maybe it is. No poo is really short for no shampoo. And it seems there really are some people who have stopped using shampoo. And if you keep reading, you will find out that they claim they are better off for it, and also that I am trying to be one of them. Yes, that’s right. On both accounts.
Right away when I heard about the “no poo” movement, the thought of not using shampoo intrigued me. I’ve always wondered, with all our modern conveniences, technologies and products that we use daily, how did people hundreds or thousands of years ago live without them, and why do we need them now? Never mind no cell phones, TVs, or other things that we still (sort of) consider luxuries, but how did people [...]
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Why I prefer having few friends
Monday, August 15th, 2011Ever since I was young I always liked spending time alone, since then I have learned that I definitely enjoy my solitude. I remember years ago when I was trying to describe myself, I would say that I preferred to spend quality time with small groups of close friends rather than in a room full of acquaintances. And that even though I would consider myself shy and quiet, when I would hang out with people I was comfortable with I would turn into a “Chatty Kathy”. Around that time I starting reading about introverts and extroverts, and I couldn’t help but laugh when I felt like I was reading a description of myself.
Over time I’ve worked on being more social, and have tried to learn how open to up to people easier. While I now have many acquaintances, there are still a select few who I would consider good [...]
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The Paradox of a 40 Hour Workweek
Friday, July 22nd, 2011
Photo Credit Mylla
Somewhere along the line it became standard for a work week to be 40 hours. I think I speak for most employees out there when I say that giving up 40 precious hours each week doesn’t leave nearly enough time for the important things, like enjoying life. And I also think I speak for most employers (except the conscious few out there who get it) when I say that being given 40 measly hours from each employee isn’t nearly enough time to get everything done that is necessary to compete in a growing global marketplace.
I won’t even go into the reasons why trading 40 hours of your life each week for a paycheck is far too much time to give up. Though I imagine if you’re reading this, you can understand why I desperately want to break free of this [...]
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Sometimes keeping the 9 to 5 job is ok
Friday, June 24th, 2011I know this seems unlikely advice, especially coming from someone who’s made a clear intention to leave the office job in the (hopefully) forseeable future. While I am certainly not suggesting that you settle for an office job if it’s not what you want, I do think that marching into your boss’ office quitting is equally inadvisable. There is plenty of advice out there from self employed entrepeneurs and other free spirited creative types that says there is no better time than now to quit; that if you’re not following your heart, you should start doing so today. But sometimes a little prudence may be called for.
That said, what you should start doing today is thinking about what you want and where you would like to get to.
But for the time being, if you still have your day job, don’t despair. Not every unhappy employee out there is young and [...]
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I didn’t attend the World Domination Summit, but I should have.
Wednesday, June 8th, 2011I had heard about the World Domination Summit that Chris Guillebeau and Co. were putting on many months back, but sort of just dismissed it.
In case you happen to be unfamiliar with Chris or the WDS, let me explain before I continue. The tagline for event, which just happens to be the coolest and most thought provoking description for an event that I’ve ever heard, is this:
In the face of overwhelming pressure to conform, how do we live a remarkable life in a conventional world?
As if you need to know more after reading that, here’s more from the WDS site:
The World Domination Summit is no ordinary event. It’s not a retreat and it’s not a business mixer. And most of all, it’s definitely not a convention. It’s an unconvention. The summit takes place in an art museum, a park, an independent bookstore, and all over the unconventional city of [...]
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