Welcome back to your new (old) home and I’m looking forward to reading your articles.

Welcome home! I really enjoyed this post. You said so many “true” things.

“This weekend has taught me how important it is to take time to really enjoy the things that are worth living for in life…[T]here will always be work that can be done. One of the fundamental components of the location independent lifestyle is learning how to embrace the fact that just because you can work, doesn’t mean you should work.”

Exactly!

Great post. I can identify with struggling to shut things down so I can enjoy life. I constantly try to balance my desire of “making money” vs. “making memories”. I seem to be doing better these days, but the lure of work and responsibilities still weighs me down on many days. Glad to see you are continuing to evolve.

BTW – I am a fellow Porlander and the weather has been unreal… no place better than Portland in the Summers.

That’s why we have to separate work and play – not just in terms of time spent on them, but also in our minds. Being able to switch gears quickly and get into work or play modes as you need to is a great skill that develops over time.

The said, I get the point about the office, but I don’t think you should dread what you do 40 hours a week. Whether or not it helps you ‘appreciate’ the free time or not, I know I wouldn’t want to spend that much time/week doing something I hate.

If every day is a “weekend”, doesn’t that make them rather meangingless?

Also, working in an office pays a lot better than vagabonding around Portland on a laptop. So there’s that, too.

The whole nine-to-five routine conditions us to believe its appropriate to work during those designated hours and if we don’t we’re being flakey or something. It can take some conscious practice and mental shifting to break out of that idea.

I love that I can work from my home and have more control over how I schedule work. I think it’s far better to work when you’re in the right zone and feel inspired or productive, than trying to knuckle down and put in the hours even though you’re only working at a fraction of your potential. You get so much more value for your time that way. Sometimes I do better work at 10 PM than in the middle of the day.

I only recently discovered your blog, but I’m really enjoying your upbeat, appreciative attitude to life. You’re obviously finding your alignment with your true path. Looking forward to more.

Best,
Lach

Definitely something I need to work on, thanks for the reminder!