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Want to work wherever and whenever you choose? Marianne Cantwell shows you how in this article and video.
Ever wanted out of the 9-7 commute-office-commute-crash race? You know, the one where you live for the weekends and your yearly holiday while, in the time between, spend your time at your desk secretly Googling getaways?
Looking for an escape route
A few years ago, that’s exactly how I felt. Great job, sexy title, shiny office, brilliant future. What did I have to complain about?
The problem was, that ‘brilliant future’ involved a life where the bulk of my day was spent in an office worrying about deadlines, dealing with ‘all important projects’ I didn’t care about for a boss who thought that illness was for wimps.
But of course, I made good money. I had decent holidays.
The job was more interesting than most things out there. Things could be worse.
I’d worked so hard to get here. How could I give it up?
Plus, who was I to dare to dream of something more when I was lucky to have any job in this economy?
All of these things were going through my head and more, every single time I thought, ‘I want out’.
But the crux of it was this: I didn’t believe a life outside of working in a ‘regular job’ was possible for someone like me.
You see, I did things the right way (this is the bit where I sound seriously conventional). I got a good university degree, worked for big household name companies, moved to consultancy and had a pretty interesting job with ‘director’ in the title. And a nice shoe collection to boot (forgive the pun).
People like me did not (I thought) give everything up to go gallivanting around the world doing god knows what and (shock horror!) having FUN even while earning money!
Not unless they 'got lucky’ or were ‘talented’ and somehow became a bestselling travel writer or photographer.
And giving up city life to travel endlessly seemed impossible unless you could tolerate being pretty broke forever.
There really was no way out.
Sounding familiar yet?
You want freedom and fabulousness, but all you can see are other jobs or conventional options that don’t quite tick the boxes. That life of freedom, exploration, travel and adventure is something confined to a one-time ‘career break’ or annual holidays.
But what if there was another way? What if it was possible to have something more than the conventional grind that most people think of as success?
Well from the title of this article you might guess that I did find another way, it is possible, and you don’t have to be a broke backpacker to make it happen.
Want to know how?
Hello from Indonesia!
Right now, I’m typing this from Bali (in fact I just found out I’m typing this article from the Ubud café Elizabeth Gilbert sat in to write her bestselling book 'Eat, Pray, Love'. Good choice, Liz). Next month I’m going on to Cambodia and Laos. Then back to London for a while then on to Italy and beyond.
There’s no difference to my business (the client experience or bottom line) if I’m in Lisbon, London or Luang Prabang.
You see, this is not a holiday. It’s regular life, and work, just in a different place with more freedom.
Is it ‘unrealistic’ to run a business from the other side of the world? Do you have to be ‘lucky’ or ‘living on a shoestring’ to make it happen? Well, no.
Here’s how it works:
Would you like to be able to live and work anywhere?
Here are the basics of starting to make it happen from where you're sitting now.
First, I'll tell you something massive — but simple — that most people overlook when sitting at their desk dreaming about having the freedom to live and work anywhere.
Here it is:
You do not have to be a travel writer
Simple, huh?
You see, the number one mistake people make when looking for the ‘what I can do that will let me live life on my own terms?’ solution is to only look at obvious (what I call ‘pre-packaged’) options.
Most people think you can only live and earn location-independently if you become something like a ‘travel writer’ or ‘photographer’ or ‘teacher in international schools’.
The problem is that a) those solutions are so obvious a million other people are trying it too (just so they can travel) and b) if you don’t like those solutions, you're back to square one (at your desk, Pret sandwich in hand).
Free range humans think differently. We take a conventional business and take control to turn it into whatever we want.
That means picking virtually any business and moving it online and over the phone so it's ‘location-independent’.
Thinking ‘this isn’t possible for me’?
This is the part right here, right now that will determine if you are a natural Free Range Human.
Cubicle Cage Humans stop right here and say, ‘well that’s all right for her, because coaching and consulting are naturally location-independent. What I want to do requires me to be in one place all the time.’
Uh-uh. Do not pass go. Do not collect that job-freeing pay-cheque.
Most coaches are certainly not location-independent. In fact, I was told in no uncertain terms that, if I stopped being based in one place, I'd never have any clients and fail.
What has happened is that I have a business where I made 5 figures within the last month alone, while working from Bali ricefields and even-smaller-island beaches.
Please understand that I don’t like giving specifics of income (I’ve been in England too long for that!) However,I am telling you that because ‘earning a decent living without slaving in an office’ seems so alien to many. Flexible location DOES NOT matter nearly as much as setting things up right and making it happen.
Generally, whatever idea you have for what you want to do is going to throw up obstacles that make you think you MUST stay put in one place if you want to earn a living.
The different between a Free Range Human and Cubicle Cage Human is that the former finds a way around the roadblock while the latter gives up at the first hurdle. So, let’s do this together.
Here are 3 ground rules for making a business idea ‘free range’
- Anything service-based, consider how to make it virtual. I even know a violin teacher who grew their business by going ‘virtual’ and giving Skype violin lessons around the world.
- Anything knowledge-based, look at how to package it up into ‘products ‘ — like e-courses. For example, if you’re thinking you want to be a dietician, you could go to point 1 and make your service telephone/Skype only and then create a series of e-books and e-courses that people can buy from your website, so you don’t even have to speak with them to help them. Or, consider adding on a community element for recurring income.
- Anything that is based on selling something physical — move sales online. Just as Net-a-Porter, the ubiquitous high end online clothing store, did.
This does exclude some options. For example, you can’t run a café virtually (well I can’t think of a way right now — if you can, email me!). So, choose a business that is not predicated on people buying from you in one specific setting.
Remember that most people in your field will say this way of working is impossible. Most people don’t do it. Not because it’s not possible but because, well... most people don’t do it.
Most people follow the herd.
But Free Range Humans break the mould.
What would be possible for you if you broke the ‘unwritten rules’ that prevent you from having the freedom to live and work anywhere?
What do I need in order to live and work on a random tropical(ish) island?
Watch this video to find out! Here I answer the practical bits — What do you need to pack? How CAN you make your business work like this? What technology do you use to run a virtual business without a real office or loads of staff? And how can you afford it?
The video covers a range of ‘how tos’ such as:
- Staying in touch
- Physical equipment to pack (the 3 things I use to run my biz)
- How to access your business from anywhere
- What really matters in making this happen
- How to afford the costs of being overseas for an extended period
Listen out for the duck family in the rice fields behind making a quacking guest appearance!
Does this kind of work-lifestyle appeal to you? How could you take your work online? Leave a comment below.
Marianne helps mid-career professionals (who feel trapped by their own success) escape the corporate cage and figure out what they REALLY want to do with the rest of their lives. She will get you thinking outside the box, excited and motivated to create a remarkable new work life you will truly love.
Marianne is regularly featured in the press (from BBC television to management journals to The Sunday Times) as a career change expert.
Say hello to Marianne at www.free-range-humans.com or join the Free Range Humans movement on Twitter @FreeRangeHumans