It’s a joke in my circle that when someone used to ask me if I worked from home, I would say no, I work from coffee shop as I quickly realized I was not particularly effective nor creative when surrounded by the four walls typically associated with eating, sleeping and showering.
I have spent a lot of time as a telecommuter upon deciding to transition from an office setting to becoming an independent contractor. Well, what does every person who is working remotely need? Coffee!!! Yes, although beverages are good, a few other things like Wi-Fi, outlets, an environment conducive to the work you need to accomplish, a good block of time and the ability to overcome those strange caveats that you notice develop as you embark on having your days easily infiltrated by not only the lures of the Internet but also, those items that can easily seemingly take priority over your ‘new’ task of work.
You may be seriously wondering why some of those items on the list even exist on an efficiency list or at least why it’s necessary to make mention of something so intuitive as a power outlet.
From my experience, each time you decide to leave your home or even the place you choose to park for the day and commute to a new location; you have now lost a huge chunk of valuable work time. I find it’s easiest to think through the events of the day, choose a strategic location that allows you flexibility but also the ability to stay at the location for a while. Of course there are the typical targets such as Starbucks and Panera but don’t forget some of your local coffee shops as well as other chains who are less accustomed to seeing the telecommuting crowd. Actually, come to think of it a few weeks ago, the Starbucks I frequent was completely packed due to some inclement weather so I invited myself into the lobby of and Aloft hotel where I was able to fully execute the agenda for the day.
Tiffany McDonald is a 6 year Navy Veteran who spent her time blowing up things! She operated a *huge* gunnery system and was a small arms trainer. Her time in the military allowed her to travel the world, meet lots of people and have a unique perspective on life; especially since she’s from South Louisiana. You won’t hear much of a twang anymore unless she has too much wine!
Tiffany received her undergraduate degree in Economics from UNF in 2009 (swoop!) after discovering a passion for the subject while attending Norfolk State University while her husband was stationed in Norfolk,Virginia. She is a self-taught digital marketer who just happened to have some GI Bill money left over and decided to get her Master’s Degree in Internet Marketing from Full Sail University.
She just joined Client Focused Media as their Digital Marketing Director to spearhead the online efforts for their clients.
From cats to coffee; wine and soccer games for her son; you will probably find her online. If not, she probably isn’t doing something right.