My Remote Work Life

Most people I know have no idea what I do for a living—even my close friends and family members. Many seem to think that I don't have a "real" job at all, since I don't go into an office every day, and they struggle to believe that I could have a thriving, fulfilling career without leaving my house.

So here's the truth: I've been working remotely (30-40 hours) for a Boston-based content marketing firm for two years now, plus freelancing for a number of publications and companies on the side. I've had some tempting opportunities for positions that would require me to return to a traditional workplace, but honestly, I don't know if I can go back. I feel grateful every day that I can work when, where, and how I want.

After seven years of working in traditional offices, I was more than ready to make the switch to remote work. I loved my editor jobs at publications in Charleston and Boston, but I always felt trapped and a little bit stifled by the 9-5 grind.

The thing about what I do is, it doesn't really matter where I do it. Writing and editing can be done anywhere with an internet connection, but for me, I do it much better when I can choose the setting and do it on my own terms.

Here's a look at one day this week—a pretty typical day—in case you're curious, or considering making the switch yourself.

• 7:30 a.m. Alarm goes off. I grab my phone and start scrolling through emails, news and social accounts while I wake up. (This is a habit I'm trying to break.)
• 8 a.m. Stumble downstairs, let the dogs out, and make coffee. Now that the weather's warmer, I take my coffee out onto the front porch with my laptop and start planning out my day (I use Stickies on my desktop) and sorting through work emails.
• 9 a.m. I don't have any morning conference calls, so I hop in the shower, get dressed, and walk the dogs up the street to peek in on our renovation project to see how it's progressing, taking pictures for the blog. I then head home, make some scrambled eggs with sliced tomatoes, and decide where I want to work for the morning.
• 10 a.m. I have an office that I share with Todd, but I like to move around when I'm working. Right now, I tend to switch between the front porch and a table on the back patio, since the weather's so nice. I set up my laptop and notebook outside and start working my way through the day's tasks, taking a quick conference call with a New York-based writer at noon.
• 12:15 p.m. We've been in D.C. for the last four days and I haven't had time to grocery shop, so we decide to try a new-to-us deli downtown for lunch. We take our laptops to make it a working lunch but find out they don't have wi-fi. Luckily, we have hotspots on our phones so we keep working for an hour after lunch while watching the action on Grace Street.
• 2 p.m. Todd has a meeting, so we head back to the house and I set up shop with my laptop and iced coffee on the back patio. I work through some editing projects and call in to the Boston office for a company-wide Skype presentation while soaking up the sun and watching the dogs roll around in the grass. 
• 3 p.m. I keep working through my to-do list, but sometimes I'll switch to freelance projects in the late afternoon, depending on my workload and meetings schedule. This usually involves research, phone interviews, writing, and sometimes in-person interviews around Richmond. 
• 5:45 p.m. I force myself to turn off my laptop and do a bit of tidying up around the house while Todd finishes his workday—watering plants, cleaning the kitchen, laundry, and vacuuming. 
• 7:30 p.m. After a walk, dinner, and running some errands, I settle onto the couch for some TV time. I have an article due tomorrow so I work on it while half-watching House of Cards.
• 9:30 p.m. The pregnancy fatigue sets in, so I head upstairs and prep for bed. I read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies until I can't keep my eyes open anymore.

I know this lifestyle isn't for everyone, and I do miss the camaraderie of office life sometimes. Who knows, I may even decide I'm ready to return to it someday. But for now, I'm just happy to have this flexibility—especially with motherhood approaching.

Is remote working something you'd like to try, or do you love going to the office every day?