This is a cartoon by self-employed and home working illustrator Ian Dicks, and like all successful humor, it contains an element of truth.  No, you may not need an interview to become self-employed or to start working flexibly, but you'd better quickly get used to looking in the mirror and asking yourself some searching questions!

The freedom of workshifting is something many people dream of, but the reality is that it is much more than a change of location.  Away from the traditional "office" environment there is nobody to tell you what to do, when to do it, how, why and so forth.  You are firmly in charge and the way to succeed is to develop a strong sense of self-awareness.  Fortunately you can easily find some useful clues in the way you work now by asking yourself some pertinent questions, such as:

• Do you work alone or as part of a group?
• How much interaction is there between you and your colleagues?
• Do you organize your own work schedule?
• Set your own deadlines?
• Work in a quiet or noisy office?
• Can you work independently or do you rely on others for support or other skills?
• Do you like to bounce ideas off other people before committing yourself?
• How long does it take you to switch off after work?
• Are you happy with your own company?
• Do your family and friends have opinions on the best way for you to work?

These questions, and others you will no doubt think of relating to your own unique circumstances, will help you identify your strong points and the areas you need to think more carefully about.  The answers will help you decide important things such as where in the house to set up your workspace, how much time you want or need to spend working alone, what kind of support you'll need and so on.

For instance, if you don't think you can always work alone, find out where you can go for coworking locally.  If you need IT support, get recommendations from people you trust and find someone suitable before you start workshifting.  Loathe parts of your essential admin work?  A virtual PA will help to lighten the load.

So holding up a mirror to your personal likes, habits and needs and asking yourself some tough questions will give you the best possible start to workshifting, but at least you won't need to buy a new outfit for the occasion!

Illustration Credit: Ian Dicks

Tom Bunzel stops by today to discuss the changing face of learning and the growth of online training . Tom is a writer, consultant and trainer in Los Angeles and the author of "Tools of Engagement:  Presenting and Training in a World of Social Media" and can be reached through his website.

For a long time "training" was in the province of a Human Resources department or considered an extra cost element of customer service.

Today, however, knowing how to use a product or service has become critical not only for internal members of an organization, but a much wider audience, particularly online. The advent of social media in particular has created a generation of active learners who want to grow their skills and reach their full potential in areas from personal growth to using technology.

This has really blurred the distinction between marketing and training--because providing training has expanded from merely learning technical skills to empowering customers, clients, associates and even vendors on a wide spectrum of knowledge.

More important perhaps, the availability of broadband has made it possible to take training anywhere and everywhere, so that the "classroom" can be in your home office, easy chair, couch or coffee shop.

When the web began this extended classroom was limited to online courseware, but now with remote training tools, live interactive events can be experienced by large scale audiences. The enables organizations or individuals to reach out and provide significant value across continents and time zones, to build a brand, engage end users, and build a loyal following.

Besides the obvious feature of being able to extend a training session to remote learners online, the use of a good remote training tool can provide several additional significant benefits for organizations, individuals or entrepreneurs with educational content of value to an audience:

• Provide an interactive platform for users to experience your product or service.
  
  
• Provide a central repository for content to be used and reused with minimal redevelopment.
  
  
• Provide reporting and follow-up capabilities that let you evaluate and stay connected to an audience.
  
  
• Provide an archived video file of the training that can be used on a hosted video site and in social media campaigns.
  
  
• Provide a database of contacts and feedback through a registration process that tracks attendees and connects them to content through social media sites like Facebook events or email campaigns.
  
  
• Develop and maintain a library of content that can be accessed by learners and potentially monetized.

The barriers to entry into the remote learning space are getting lower all the time, and a wide variety of tools exist from podcasts to enterprise programs--but significant benefits can be achieved with tools that offer the foregoing features at a relatively low cost in terms of reaching an audience and (re)developing content. And with the implementation of a complementary social media strategy, value can be provided across an array of platforms to a scalable audience, with accountability and interactivity through blogs, social networks and the features of the actual remote training tool itself.

What are your thoughts on taking learning and training online? Are you using it within your organization?

Photo Credit: doctorious

Before my flight to Chicago took off the other day, the woman in 3C was talking business on her mobile. She was suggesting that her caller contact John Doe, who was a good employee but a tad indiscreet. And to stay away from Jane Deere, because she couldn't be trusted with confidential information. Yup, she named names (not these names)--first, last, everything.

This happens all too often. From client strategy to personnel changes to office gossip, people are sharing competitive intelligence without any regard as to whether you just might know who or what they're talking about or can track it down with a few clicks of a mouse. A couple of times, in fact, I've been tempted to thank someone for the useful business leads just to make a point.

Workshifting is great, but it means we're often conducting business in public spaces. That puts the onus on us to be careful about what we say, what we're working on, and what papers are spread out around us. Three things to consider:

1. What's on your computer? The netbook that leaves my home office, for example, has no financial data on it. Not a single invoice nor reference to my social security number or EIN, nor a login to online banking. I'm so careful that I once saved confidential client files to an external hard drive so no data breach would come from me.
   
   
2. What's on your mobile? Sure our phones are smart, but they're not idiot proof. It's inconvenient to lock down your phone, so most of us don't bother. I don't, but I don't have anything stored on there that might be bad for business (or embarrassing) if it fell into the wrong hands.
   
   
3. 
Who's sitting around you? It's hard to work without spreading out papers or opening multiple windows online. But what happens if you're working on a budget, researching the competition, or brainstorming new product ideas for your business? Sometimes it pays not only to know who's listening but also who can see your office paraphernalia. I used to know a woman who could read upside down, a great skill for a negotiator or a curious workshifter across from you at a big shared table.

What say you?

Photo Credit: allienato

Today we have a guest post from Keith Rosen on the considerations between remote coaching and face-to-face coaching. Keith is the President of , a provider of leadership and sales coaching and corporate training. He is also the author of Coaching Salespeople into Sales Champions: A Tactical Playbook for Managers and Executives, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Cold Calling and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Closing the Sale.

With more business conducted across online communication platforms and more sales teams operating in a virtual environment, many sales managers question how proficient they can be at coaching their team at a distance--especially if they have never been shown how to do so effectively.

While you may not always be in the same room as the person you are coaching, you can schedule regular coaching sessions over the telephone, or using an online meeting application such as GoToMeeting.

Now, I'm certainly not disputing the value of coaching someone face to face and the additional things that can be observed when doing so. However, a large majority of managers do not often have the luxury of calling a face-to-face meeting and instead find themselves supporting, coaching, and managing their people over the telephone. As such, developing and strengthening your telephone coaching skills becomes essential to leveraging every coaching opportunity you have with your teamwopr.

More and more, remote coaching is quickly becoming the norm and not the exception. In my twenty-plus years of coaching thousands of managers and salespeople, at least 95% of all the coaching I have done has been over the telephone. Not only has remote coaching been proven to be incredibly effective but it is also highly efficient. If delivered effectively, coaching at a distance can save you a considerable amount of time as it relates to scheduling limitations as well as travel time. Managers also have the opportunity to do more impromptu coaching and have check in calls with their team, whether it's to build accountability, reinforce a message, handle a timely challenge or even to celebrate a win. This 'just in time' coaching can now be delivered when your people need it most.

Some managers may think they are at a disadvantage coaching remotely, and as a result, don't put forth the effort and attempt to coach at a distance. These managers mistakenly believe they cannot effectively coach their people if they are not in front of them. They feel they are unable to 'observe' their team in the field if they are not physically present with them.

However, there are just as many managers who feel remote coaching works better for a variety of reasons. After all, the focus needs to be on the message and many managers feel that when coaching remotely, they don't have any other visual distractions that can take away from listening purely to the spoken word.

In addition, you actually do have the opportunity to observe your team 'in the field.' Granted, your direct report may not be next to you when they're delivering a presentation or a pitch but you can schedule a conference call with the salesperson and listen in while that person makes follow up calls to prospects or customers or when they're cold calling, should cold calling be part of that person's responsibility.

And even though you're not physically present, you can observe other things as well that go beyond simply what you're hearing. For example, whether you've scheduled a time for a coaching session or a time to observe them over the telephone, are they prepared for their meeting with you? Are they efficient and organized? Do they have their notes, call list, objectives and expectations clearly mapped out? Are they focused or distracted?

In many cases, if the telephone is the main communication tool for your salespeople, whether they are presenting, following up, handling a customer issue or prospecting, it only makes sense to observe and coach them using the same communication platform. This will give you more of a realistic sense of what they are doing, what they are saying and how they come across. After all, if the telephone is predominantly what your salespeople are using when communicating with your prospects and customers, it only makes sense for you to listen to them and what they sound like over the same medium. In this case, conducting skill practice scenarios and role plays face to face rather than on the phone is actually more of a simulated environment than a realistic one!

So, what else can you observe at a distance? If you're on the phone listening to one of your salespeople make cold calls or follow up calls to your prospects or customers, are you observing not only what they're saying but what they are not saying? Are you being mindful of their tone, pacing, resonance and the confidence they exude through the phone? By knowing what to listen for during a remote coaching session or observation session, you'll find that you will be able to uncover many valuable coaching opportunities, without having to be physically present with your team.

Of course, when coaching remotely, that does not mean you now have the license to check your emails, instant messages or text messages on your phone while doing so, just because your direct report can't see you through a phone line! I guarantee, they can still tell when you are distracted by something else and as such, are not listening or fully engaged in the conversation.

When coaching remotely, you must fine tune your listening and focus purely on the message, what is being said as well as what is not being said. Otherwise, you're sure to miss out on subtleties in the conversation which can result in a missed coaching opportunity that is sure to dilute the impact of your coaching.

Realize that whether you are coaching face to face or remotely, the same tools, strategy and coaching framework still work, are applicable and are just as effective, regardless of the environment in which you are coaching.

Photo Credit: newformula

My husband and I recently moved into a new apartment here in Chicago. One of the main reasons we selected the new place was because it has an office - an actual separate room, with a window, lots of light and most importantly a door (that closes!). This is a big change for me - my office in our old place was in our living room, nestled between our love seat and the TV.

Needless to say I was pretty excited about having my own separate work space. Despite this, the move itself was a bit daunting. Moving is stressful enough, and when you work from home you have to deal with an office move as well. Here are a few things that helped me minimize disruption to my work life:

10 Tips for Moving a Home Office

1. Clean out those file cabinets - in the weeks leading up to our move I de-cluttered my filing cabinets. Many of the files I had saved were no longer relevant to current projects or were now in a digital format. Moving is a great opportunity to "clean house," keeping only what you truly need.
   
   
2. Try to stay organized - moving can make you feel disoriented and frazzled. Try and stay organized by labeling boxes and approaching things systematically instead of throwing everything into a box at the very last minute.
   
   
3. Give yourself enough time to pack - I started packing a good 2 weeks before our actual move date - this made it seem less overwhelming and stressful. Also, label your boxes so you know exactly what is in each box if you need to get to it quickly.
   
   
4. Have a plan - this is a bit of a no-brainer, but a list of what needs to be done and who will do it will help you stay sane throughout the process. Also, make sure you don't agree to any important deadlines on or around your move date.
   
   
5. Internet - Make sure you contact your new Internet (and phone) provider a few weeks before your move so you can schedule a service appointment to get up and running. That way everything will be ready for you when you move in. I was a bit behind on this one and didn't end up getting Internet until a few days after we moved in.
   
   
6. Inform others about your new address - I've always found that informing people of your new address is one of the most cumbersome steps of moving. In addition to colleagues, clients, family and friends, be sure to change your address with the USPS and update all your online accounts.
   
   
7. Measure your desk - measure your desk to make sure it will fit into your new office. That will help prevent a big headache down the road.
   
   
8. Find the original boxes - I still had the original boxes for my printer and speakers. Moving this type of electronic equipment in its original box will help prevent any damages.
   
   
9. Know what you need to get up and running and pack all of those things in one box. That will help you get back on your feet quickly.
   
   
10. Make unpacking your office a priority - it's no fun trying to work in an office that's a disaster zone. Once you've got the big things out of the way, make unpacking your office a priority.

What about you guys? Have any of you moved recently? What helped you stay sane?

Photo Credit: Travelin' Librarian

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of articles, books, blogs, and Websites filled with advice about how to manage remote workers (or telecommuters, or workshifters, or distributed teams--we tend to use these terms interchangeably, even though we know there are subtle distinctions among them).

However, most of that advice amounts to broad generalizations or "bumper-sticker"-like slogans that are well-meant but rather shallow: "Pay attention to your staff's personal life," "Measure what they produce, not how much time they spend," "Hold regular conference calls," "Check in with your subordinates on a regular basis."

While those slogans do point in the right direction, they tend to be stated as universal truths even though the real world is full of complexity and varying contexts. Worse, they don't begin to deal with why and how companies choose to embrace workforce mobility. And an organization's motivations and experiences make a huge difference in what works and what doesn't.

In our latest research (full report here), we identify and discuss five major things that leading organizations do to make workshifting work for them--and for their employees:

1. They do it strategically. That is, the workshifting program is formal, explicit, and sponsored by senior management. Everyone knows why the program has been launched and what specific business outcomes it is intended to help achieve.
   
   
2. The organization and its members learn to work differently over time. In most respects employees continue to do the same basic work even though they are in different places. However, "going mobile" requires some fundamental changes in how they get that work done. And distributed work essentially forces organizations to measure and reward work outcomes instead of just monitoring employees' activities through "management by walking around."
   
   
3. Training is a central part of the program. And the training programs include both managers of remote workers and the remote individual contributors themselves.
   
   
4. The effective deployment and use of collaboration technologies is central to making distributed work "work." And we are not referring just to the basics like email, conference calling, and instant messages. Successful organizations today make a wide variety of collaboration tools available to their distributed workforce.
   
   
5. Success depends on planning thoughtfully and implementing aggressively. It's an old idea, but an important one: plan the work, and work the plan. Distributed work programs aren't just about redesigning facilities and letting people move about the country; they almost always include significant organizational and cultural change, and must be treated as such.

Big Insights

Phil Montero of The Anywhere Office told us:

Too many organizations stumble into flexible work on an ad-hoc basis, and then adapt to it only when they realize that it's happening. Successful organizations make sure their managers are trained in how to lead remote employees and take a deliberate approach and strategy.

Kate North, Vice President of Global Business Development for e-work.com, an online training program firm, made a similar point:

Today, the primary driver for many organizations adopting mobility strategies is cost reduction driven by a shrinking real estate portfolio. And as the implementation team launches, if they have not done their homework and properly prepared their mid-level managers on how to successfully lead a distributed team, their program could hit a wall.

In the past, managers picked up a tremendous amount of "visual queuing" when their teams were office-based. They were able to "see," quickly and subconsciously, how their team was doing, what they were working on, and who was connecting with whom. When visual queuing is no longer available, a manager can feel quite vulnerable and frustrated.

In addition, if individual employees sense that their manager has not cultivated these skills and doesn't feel secure, they too may resist a mobility program--especially in today's economy. On the flip side, when a manager has honed the necessary skills and continually demonstrates best practices, employees will begin to thrive in the virtual workplace by developing their own skills; and, needless to say, their engagement and productivity will soar.

Workshifting Requires Redesigning Work Processes and Management Practices

We also identified five specific ways that successful workshifting employers transform they way they get work done:

1. Going paperless. People can be much more mobile when they don't have to access paper documents that are by definition stored in only one location. The real magic of centrally stored digital information is that once it's online it can be accessed and processed from almost anywhere.
   
   
2. Supplying workshifters with the mobile technologies they need. One government agency we studied no longer has any desktop computers. Everything is portable, although all laptops have physical security devices and are assigned to individual employees. This degree of technology mobility increases the likelihood that people will work wherever they are--because they can.
   
   
3. Making time to practice new tools such as job-specific software applications. The winners give their employees time to learn how to use new collaborative technologies well before they are expected to integrate them into their work style.
   
   
4. Ensuring that workshifters are "contactable" (i.e., published times when they are available to peers and managers). When people work in a single central location everyone assumes that if they can see you, you are available to talk. When people are remote they must set aside specific blocks of time for calls and other real-time collaborative activities. One remote manager called these times his "open-door hours."
   
   
5. Teach workshifters personal discipline, including knowing when to "unplug." Gil Gordon (one of the thought leaders we interviewed) is famous for promoting the value of getting offline. Burnout can become endemic among remote workers unless they learn how to disconnect regularly.

This research has been both enlightening and confirming. We've been tracking distributed work and workforce mobility for many years. We've helped clients write telecommuting policies; we've built the business case for flexible work programs; we've designed, implemented, and evaluated pilot projects and training programs.

We have always been major advocates for flexible work. Yet interviewing other thought leaders and experienced practitioners over the past several months has re-energized us and strengthened our belief in the "rightness" of flexible work.

In the end, it all comes down to an abstract but critically important aspect of organizational culture: trust. Trust the organization and its people to do what they're asked to do: hire people to accomplish a specific task; measure and manage them on the basis of results; and don't worry about controlling where and when they do their work.

Photo Credit: Round Indigo Rock

After having run out of gas, I had a thought on the side of a lonely highway in Utah during our Rise of the Cubicle Farmer road trip and it made me think about how sometimes we may push too hard, too fast.  Sometimes the best decision might be to rest and regroup and start fresh instead of pushing it to no end, particularly when you miscalculate when the end may be.  This could be the end of a project launch, business idea, etc.  Here's a video I took while on the side of the road.

Do you take time to refuel?

One of the nice things about working in an office environment is the camaraderie. Especially if we run into a problem. There's always someone to talk to or help us figure it out. In a workshifting situation, that dynamic changes, and we have to work through our own problems.

The first step to solving our own problems is understanding that the situation we're faced with is really a problem. Dr. Barry Johnson, author of the book Polarity Management: Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems talks about the differences between problems and polarities. His theory is sometimes we try to use a problem solving approach on something that's really not a problem at all.

One definition of a problem is the difference between what you have and what you want. Examples of problems include: "How do I get to I-95?" or "Should we merge with XYZ Company?" In these instances, once you get to I-95 or merge (or not) with XYZ Company, the problem is solved.

By contrast, a polarity occurs when you have two opposing forces. For example, centralization versus decentralization is a polarity. This is a polarity because neither centralization or decentralization are wrong - they are just two different approaches. And even when you choose one, you still have ongoing dynamics to deal with (read: it's not over.) Dr. Johnson elaborates in his book how polarities are not problems and the specifics of to manage the opposing forces of a polarity. It's a fascinating read.

But for now, let's go back to our problem. You've analyzed the situation and you know you have a problem. Now what? Well, following is a three step approach to working through the problem. This is known as the STP model of problem solving.

STP is an acronym for Situation - Target - Proposal.

During the Situation phase, you have the opportunity to examine the situation. You're able to collect any relevant information, understand the dynamics of the problem, and the possibilities in terms of changing the situation. Using the example above, you're driving along and realize you need to be on I-95.

The next phase, allows you to identify the Target, or the end to the problem (i.e. arriving at I-95). This is ultimately what you want to accomplish. You can also see if there is anything you would like to avoid - like getting lost on the way to I-95. Or maybe not hitting any toll roads.

The last phase, Proposal, is when you generate ideas and develop a plan to solve the problem. This would be using your GPS, downloading a Google map on your phone or stopping at the local gas station for directions.

Think about a problem that you're currently experiencing. You can ask yourself the following questions to work through the problem:

• Step One: Assess the Situation - Ask yourself the who, what, where, when, why questions to fully understand the matter. Also, don't forget to ask "to what extent", "is there a pattern", and "what is the cause".
  
  
• Step Two: Identify the Target - Create a vision of what would happen if the problem were solved. This will clarify the issues involved in solving the matter.
  
  
• Step Three: Generate Proposals - Now that you've accurately assessed the problem and determined the target, use this step as a way to prepare the action plan to solve the situation. 

In the first two installments of this series, we talked about knowing ourselves and doing meaningful work. Being able to solve problems adds another layer to our workshifting competencies. When we're able to understand our strengths and weaknesses and apply those in the context of work, it helps us correctly assess, develop and implement a solution to the problems we face.

But what happens when that problem is another person? Well, that's our next workshifting quality - conflict management.

Photo Credit: Hjem

Today we are releasing the results of a study that was conducted by Forrester with Citrix Online (you know, the GoToMeeting folks who help us keep the lights on around here) that looks at how business people communicate and collaborate across the globe.

As workshifters, we all know how liberating it is to work when, how and where you want, and that technology helps us do that without comprising quality of work or efficiency. But does the rest of the world get it? Forrester conducted a study with Citrix Online that looks at how business people communicate and collaborate across the globe, and it turns out that the in-person meeting is alive and well with 84% of respondents still having them. However, these in-person meetings often are inconvenient to coordinate and don't achieve the agenda's goals. In fact, only 45% are very satisfied that planning meetings achieve the task in hand and less than half believe any type of meeting to be very efficient! What is it then, fellow workshifters? Are people just in plain denial about the effectiveness of in-person meetings?

Communication isn't simple as people deal with complex and challenging work environments. From dispersed workforces, an accelerated pace of business and changing attitudes and work styles, it's important for companies to look at such snapshots of current trends and practices. It provides the opportunity to think about the implications for how to build the right organizational meeting/communication structure.

The study includes interesting findings that shed light on similarities and differences across generations and countries with how people like to interact with coworkers and what they need to be productive. For instance, contrary to what people probably assume, Gen Y does not have the monopoly on tech use and social tools in the office. They're actually least likely to share information via text messages and use social networking the least frequently!

And how do the different surveyed countries compare in their individual business languages? Check out the infographic below:

Okay, maybe I'm a cheap date about anything that promotes remote work, but this video by WorkshiftCalgary brought tears to my eyes.

If you can't view the below video, go watch it over here.

Robyn Bews, the project manager for WorkshiftCalgary, and her team have put together a truly impressive program to help Calgary businesses "think outside the office." With funding from Transport Canada and the Government of Alberta, WorkshiftCalgary offers the tools, best practices, and resources that make it easy for companies to participate in their pilot.

"We're already working with over a dozen companies ranging in size from a couple of hundred employees to several thousand," says Bews. "It requires a real culture change to overcome the how-do-I-manage-them-if-I-can't-see-them mentality, but we're making headway."

In the U.S., only a handful of states have programs that aggressively encourage workshifting in the private sector. My own state, California--where traffic and smog continually plague its top cities--had one of the first telework initiatives in the country. Note the word "had," as we no longer do. What's with that? Meanwhile, thirty-seven states, are actively discouraging it with predatory tax and labor rules.

Let's take a lesson from our friends to the north, eh? It's time to make the road less traveled the way to work.

Help promote the good work that WorkshiftCalgary is doing by sending the video to all your workshifting blogger friends.

I think one of the biggest challenges every workshifter goes through when they transition from an office to a remote working environment is the feeling that you have lost access. Access to project updates. Access to people. And perhaps most critical to the workday - access to immediate answers.

This was a challenge for me when I started working remotely. There were many days when I felt like my productivity came to a grinding halt because I was missing some tiny (or not so tiny) nugget of information that made it impossible for me to finish what I was working on.

Looking back at it now I realize that in most instances I could have probably just figured it out myself and continued on. But more often than not I was still in that mental state where I felt like I needed to walk over to my colleague's desk and get an immediate answer to the "problem."

I think that one of the biggest things I've learned as a workshifter is the ability to work independently and take projects as far as possible without additional input.

When you're in the office it's tempting to just rely on other people to help you complete that thought and figure out the next steps. As a workshifter you mostly rely on technology to communicate with the mothership. Whether it's emails, phone calls or video chats, chances are that you're not always going to get an immediate response. Sooner or later, instead of waiting for the return phone call or email, you find a way to adapt to the new environment.

I believe this type of independent work ethic is a valuable quality in any employee - whether they work in an office or not. If you've found this to be a challenge in your working environment, perhaps consider mimicking a workshifting setting to help encourage your employees or team members to start taking this further themselves, instead of immediately demand answers.

What do you guys think? Does workshifting breed an independent workforce?

Photo Credit: Melissa Leon

I started working from home full-time a little over 2 years ago, when my partner and I decided to give up our downtown office in an effort to simplify and cut down on some expenses. It was a great decision, and we've never looked back. Our team of web developers, graphic designers, and video specialists all work remotely as well, and we find that it makes us all very agile and highly productive. We've had to work through the occasional communications glitch, but overall it's been the best thing for our company's growth and success.

There's only one problem with being home-based. A good proportion of my work now takes place within the same physical space as my leisure time, and that can create some conflicts. It's all too easy to just "hop on the computer" for a few minutes, and suddenly find myself caught up in various work tasks, when I'm supposed to be relaxing with my family or sleeping. I don't know how many times my husband has said to me "Are you STILL on that computer?" at 11pm, as I do "just one more thing" before going to bed.

Working from home can easily throw off the work/life balance. I've learned the hard way that it's critical to maintain a balance between downtime and work time, or all sorts of disastrous things can happen. Here are a few of the things I've managed to figure out to help strike and keep my work/life balance.

Lift and Separate

For the longest time, my office was in one corner of our basement rec room. This caused two problems. One, I'd get frustrated when my husband would come home from work and want to turn on the TV to play video games or watch a movie, interrupting my flow (I can't work as effectively with background distractions). Two, even after I shut off the computer for the day, it was too physically close to my "living" space. I would be trying to wind down by relaxing in front of the TV, and my office would be doing all it could to lure me back. I'd find reasons to go back and do that "one more thing", and before I knew it, it would be 11pm and another so-called relaxing evening would be shot.

I've now rectified this by moving my office upstairs to a separate room (which was already being used as a computer room). My husband and I are still in the process of turning this space into a functioning office for both of us, but just by moving my work into a room that I can physically leave at the end of the day has helped immensely. I can literally close the door and walk away, and I've reclaimed the rest of my house as living space again. My home is my office, but my office is no longer my home.

The Big Wind Down

When we work in an office, we leave for the day, go home, or out with friends. Most of the time, we have a good 4 or 5 hours to unwind from the day, have a change of physical surroundings, and get in a good headspace to have a restful night, so we can be refreshed for the morning. When we work from home, we tend to move directly from the office to our beds, and then wonder why we can't get to sleep. We skip over the normal wind-down process because the commute to our bed is only a few steps. I was having real problems with sleep a few months back. I would go to bed and my mind would be racing with all the things I had to do. Nothing I did could help me calm down. Then finally, my wise husband reminded me that I still needed that wind down time I'd had when I was working in an office.

Don't shut off the computer and just go to bed. Spend some time, even an hour, unwinding after you finish your work. Watch some TV, read a (non-business) book, meditate, do yoga, or have a non work- related chat with your spouse or a friend. Giving yourself that bit of time every day will help you clear your mind, rest better, and be more fresh to take on the challenges of the next day.

Working from home is great. But keeping the balance is definitely a challenge. How do you balance work and life when they occur in the same space?

Photo Credit: sarako

What is the biggest myth about workshifting?

I posed this question to my LinkedIn network recently, and got some familiar answers and a couple responses that just might surprise you.

Myth #1: Workshifters Are Less Productive Than Office Workers

Several people pointed out that they are far more productive now than they were in traditional office settings. For example, Harp Arora noted that she gets "more done, faster, with fewer meetings (mostly only by phone), fewer interruptions, and better technology in my home office than was ever true in the corporate world." Gabrielle Conde said that "having no 4-hour commutes reduces stress and makes it easier to focus on tasks for work."

Myth #2: Workshifters Are Hobbyists

Susan Rose, who lost business early on when clients learned she worked from a home office, said the biggest myth she encounters is the notion that people who work from home offices or coffee shops "are hobbyists, not professionals." She added that, over time, she has seen a shift, with more clients now "willing to judge me on my work product and not my work environment."

Myth #3: Workshifters Are Slackers

Several people touched on this theme too. Homeworkers.net said that "people assume that just because you are working from home that you must be sitting around in your PJs all day watching TV." Mark Leonard added that "it does take discipline to work from home, but it takes more discipline to stop working after 8 hours."

Myth #4: Flexibility Is "All That"

Anfernee Chansamooth points out that "with great flexibility comes great responsibility and commitment to be focused and avoid getting distracted." He also noted that there are times when working face-to-face is helpful, saying that when a previous employer cut the travel budget "the project team I was working with did not achieve nearly as good synergy as when we were able to all meet together in one location and connect as people, not just virtual workers."

Myth #5: Workshifting Is A Trend

Cyrus Afzali said that workshifting is more myth than actual trend. "We've been hearing about various versions of this trend since the 1980s," he wrote. "While it really couldn't pick up en masse until technology made it easier to support remote workers, it's still not a mass trend and won't likely be."

Conclusion

Here's the thing about myths. They exist because people buy into them or use them to justify their status quo. We workshifters might live in a workspace-optimized, tech-laden, flexible, and uber-productive world, but it's our world. Our bubble. We want workshifting to be a trend, but is it?

People are watching us from outside--and they're not convinced. What can we do to change the perception outside the bubble?

Photo Credit: Lagged2Death

A person without a sense of humor is like a wagon without springs. It's jolted by every pebble on the road --- Henry Ward Beecher

According to Harvard Medical School laughter and humor are an important part of our lives. "Once a daily with gusto" is possibly good for your health. Laughter can relieve tension and stress, and boost the immune system. They also cite that laughter and humor "can be a tonic for the brain."

As a workshifting consultant and coach, I am keenly aware that a sense of humor is an essential ingredient in my ability to manage and succeed in working with people, projects. A sense of humor, combined with a deep breath, can often help me deal with work that can routinely involves complex topics and situations.

When working with leaders around the world, I am able to notice their inclusiveness of others, their emotional intelligence, AND their sense of humor. Some have the ability to make difficult situations seem "OK," and are able to motivate others with their sense of commitment combined with a sense of humor.

A friend and mentor who is a CEO of large international organization continues to make me smile. She is smart, passionate, and giving, AND has a great sense of humor about herself, and situations. Our periodic "Diva" breakfast meetings always leave me thinking, and smiling.

After a recent difficult project, a colleague and I went to dinner and shared our reflections about the day. I remember the good sushi, the mediocre wine, and the wonder laughter about our day.

I am grateful for my "real life" friends, and those from Twitter and Facebook who post links, videos, stories and comments with the hope that we might laugh or at least smile at some point in our day. I frequently find myself laughing at a post or text message from a friend, and acknowledging the wonders of the serendipity of the timing.

Recently in one of my Facebook status updates, I questioned whether I was on the show from my past ---"Candid Camera." One situation after the other had me almost laughing OUT LOUD. Clearly there was a lesson to be learned, or a good episode to be filmed.

The "Candid Camera" question becomes semi-philosophical. Can all of these situations REALLY be happening? AND YET...I survived. THAT day is over, and there have been many more after that day, with more moments for pausing, and laughter.

I have written other places about some of my wonderful early childhood memories of leaning against my mother, and listening to the hum of her voice. I can vividly remember the safety and comfort of being in her lap and listening to her voice. The sound of her laughter was even better. To this day, my mother likes to laugh, and even laughs at her own jokes...She often reminds me to laugh.

When I started writing this post, I remembered scene from the movie Mary Poppins "I Love to Laugh". As an adult, I look at the scene and think about with whom can I most identify? Would I be the person trying to be serious? Or, would I be the person trying to laugh the most?

Many people comment on the infectious sounds of children's laughter. Their giggling, laughing, and enjoying of the sometimes basic aspects of life can often change our mood of adult seriousness --- within seconds.

I am getting better at laughing at myself with compassion. I know that it not only helps make things better --- but now I will remind myself that it is healthy for me as well.

Have you had a good laugh today?

Photo Credit: chris.huggins

The conversation of sleep has recently come up in the last few weeks amongst some fellow workshifters in my town. All of us are notorious for pulling late hours and depriving ourselves of recharge. For some reason there is a common badge of honor associated with this practice. I believe this is a myth. Getting little or no sleep on purpose is not a badge of honor, it's terribly unproductive.

I was the guy that claimed my most creative and productive time was between 1am and 4am. Not true. It was only that way because I wasted time during the day and had to meet a deadline.

Can any of you relate?

Now I am not advocating you hold yourself to a 9-5 workshifting schedule where you go to sleep at 10pm and get up at 6am. Many of us left that way of life behind. I am recommending you build sleep into your life. I have a friend who goes to sleep at 4am and begins his day at noon. His lifestyle fits into this schedule and he is well rested.

Hopefully, you realize by now that sleep is important. If you're not convinced, here are a few resources to check out:

• Sleep Benefits
• 10 Things to Hate About Sleep Loss
• Sleep

You may not be at a point where creating a schedule for more sleep on a daily basis is realistic. I have been there. My solution was a sleep investment. I would choose a day (every week or two) and not set an alarm. I slept until I was done. This helped me restore some balance internally. This investment paid dividends. My body and brain loved me for it.

It is easy to get burnt out workshifting. The nature of working anywhere tends to have us working all the time. This usually eats into other areas essential to living a healthy life. 

Resist the temptation of sleep deprivation. Work hard. Play hard. Sleep hard.

Photo Credit: Paul Jacobson

If you live in a town with more than 50,000 people, you may want to skip this post.  However, if you're like me and live in a town with less than 5,000 people, read on. 

I always get a tinge of jealousy when I read about all the great conferences, meetups, tweetups, and just general thought power that permeates from cities like LA, SF, NY, Boston and Chicago.  The sheer mass of people, technology and geography stokes the flames of connectedness in the Big 5.

My world is quite the opposite.  A little background will help paint the picture.  I moved from LA to the wine country, just outside Santa Barbara, about seven years ago.  I went from uber networked, to network anemia.  In LA I was emerged in the startup culture and tech scene of the late 90's early 00's.  Don't get me wrong, moving here has been fantastic, but I've had to re-learn how to connect.

The wine country is an interesting mix of vintners, cattle and horse ranchers, hoteliers, restaurateurs, cowboys and me.  In my town the word tweetup and meetup are not part of the vocabulary.  The first time I mentioned Foursquare it was repeated back to me as "fourplay."  In fact only recently have I been able to convince a few vintners to get on Foursquare.  I was Mayor of literally every establishment I went to.  I posted to Facebook encouraging a little competition, and it worked.

My friend Paul Warson is the wine maker at Firestone Vineyard.  He really embraced the social web and is making the most of it, both for his personal brand and for Firestone. He also dethroned me as Mayor in just about every establishment on Foursquare.  One person that needed no instruction was Keith Saarloos.  He's a winemaker, tasting room proprietor, great guy and a damn good marketer.

I put my social chops to the test and called out for a tweetup at the Saarloos wine tasting room.  To my amazement, it fell flat.  Keith was broadcasting from the event, so he really didn't need help from me anyway.  I knew all along that my network was mostly outside of my town, but what the hell, I had to try.

So where does this leave the digital nomad that roams the small town?  It requires you to meet people the old fashioned way, one at a time.  I didn't meet Paul or Keith because of my marketing skills.  I met them through other people, which is very typical for a small town.

I make sure I get to know the people behind the counter at my favorite workshifting spot.  I met the local vintners and restaurant owners by attending local events.  When appropriate, I give my digital I.D. and we continue to engage online.  It's been slow, but very rewarding.  I met some amazing people and I get the opportunity to have relationships that extend beyond my digital confines.

Living in a small town requires a mix of in-person and digital connections.  I still need to travel outside of my circle to stay engaged, meet new people, and get a fresh perspective.  I recently had the opportunity to speak at New Marketing Experience in Chicago.  The conference was well attended and I walked away making some new friends and learning a great deal about how companies are using the social web to connect with their customers and build trust.

1. Attend local events and fundraisers.
2. Make a point to meet the owners of the local businesses that you frequent.
3. Help them cross the digital divide.  Usually they are very interested, but don't know where to start.
4. Make a real connection.  By that I mean, make a real friend or acquaintance.  Don't start with an agenda, just connect.
5. Attend events outside of your area and share the knowledge

Now it's your turn to give it up!  How do you workshift and connect in your small town?

Photo Credit: {Wes}