Keeping Up With Your Work On The Road
by Andy Hayes @ Get Paid To Write Online
You may have heard all about the latest trend of becoming a Location Independent writer. It seems great – and in fact, it is – being able to work wherever you want. But even if you aren’t cutting ties and taking your writing business on the road, there may be times when you will want to work while on the road. Here are a few tips for ensuring that you can keep enjoying freelancing and keep up your productivity habits while on unfamiliar ground.
Work on your Time Management Process
Do you have a diary where you record all major deadlines? This should be your number one priority while on the road – at the end of the day, if you’ve been delayed in travel or ill or otherwise, drop the marketing and other nice to haves and ensure that your paying clients receive what they asked for. On-time with an apology about further revisions needed is better than late with no follow-up.
Beyond your major deadlines, establish your to-do list. I use a white board at home to keep me right, so when on the road I have a Microsoft Word-based version that does the same thing. For extra security, put everything onto Google Docs, so in the event you have laptop issues and need to access from elsewhere.
Speaking of which…Backup, Backup, Backup
This is a case of do as I say, not as I do. Backup all your stuff. You’ll want to be prepared in the event of disaster: your laptop gets crushed under the wheels of a bus (hey, you never know), it is stolen from your hotel room, or you have an otherwise catastrophic technology failure. Again, Google Docs can help you here as a nice safety blanket.
Test Your Technology before you Go
Make sure that everything works the way you want before you go. Easy way to test? Spend the day in a local cafe. Maybe you’ll be going somewhere without Wifi or easy internet access – so go to a cafe without it. Otherwise, if you’re sure you can get online, then go somewhere with the Wifi and make sure that detached from your home creature comforts.
Take Advantage of Your Surroundings
It’s not just us travel writers that can take advantage of our surroundings. Are you a laser-sharp copywriter? See if a new locale inspires a new way to incorporate the call to action in your client’s copy. Fiction writer? People-watch and see if you can find a new charcter for that hard-to-position antagonist.
Decide Your Work-Enjoy Balance
I’m not a fan of work-life balance because I think you should enjoy what you do. So instead, decide your work-enjoy balance for your trip – in other words, how many hours do you need to work? If you’re location independent or on the road, part of the reason is to
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