...and ditching the suit for hiking boots...
I love technology - I'm a total geek and proud of it; coming from an era when speaking to someone on the phone was a thing you did in the hall, in full earshot of your parents and without a modicum of discretion, it wasn't until my late twenties when mobile phones finally became something that didn’t require a bank loan and a suitcase to carry them around in. Around the same time, I bought a PC for my daughters (that’s what I told everyone:). It was magical; I remember them squealing with delight as each letter on the keyboard made something happen on the screen. Long after they went to bed, I was pressing ‘M’ for monkey, marvelling at the connection between my fingers and the pixelated ape on the monitor. That magic has never left me.
Some years on, that connection with technology is an intrinsic part of almost every aspect of our lives. Those same daughters travel the world now, and no matter where they are, we are for all intents and purposes in the same room together; distance has no meaning when every nuance, grimace or knowing smile can be picked up in the way that the old plastic hall phone couldn’t.
For me, though, there is a more recent reason for my enthusiasm on all things technical; more than ever, technology provides an opportunity to change how we choose to earn our living, escaping the drudgery of the 9-5 slog if we so choose. Being location independent is not just an aspiration of world-travelling techno-gurus who have grown up in the digital age. It’s a possibility for anyone with a good non-contact based skill set and a 4G connection. Of course, you have to be good to make it work sustainably, disciplined to work long hours when needed, and willing to kiss a lot of frogs at the beginning, but it's an entirely different life for those seeking a better work/life balance.
As I’m writing this, I’m sitting at the foot of Ben Nevis in Scotland, watching the haze lift as the sun heats up last night’s dew on the mountain. It’s 6am and the peacefulness around me is amazing. A client who needs their website content written, has no idea that it’s being developed from a picnic table on a sleepy campsite. As businesses continue the upward trend of outsourcing work to freelancers, more and more people like me are creating an extraordinary life from ordinary skills - with technology as their entrepreneurial wingman.
One more hour, then I'll get my walking boots on and head for the hills...did I mention I love technology...?
