I think this is great advice. My home office is also where I keep my books, and a lot of the time I’ll use the reward of reading a chapter in the latest book I’m hooked on to keep my productivity going far longer than it would otherwise.

My freelancing arena has everything I own in it! Multiple pianos, guitars, amps, a 100 years worth of stereo gadgets, books, exercise stuff, you name it! Some days I get distracted, but one cool way to think about it is that having all the things you love close by makes you realize that your freelance work is paying for it!

What a great post! I haven’t played my guitar in several years, since I gave up all my hobbies and decided to focus on writing. However, I recently pulled that guitar out and dusted it off, but I still haven’t found time to play. Your post has me thinking prop the thing next to my desk and use it a distraction. In fact, I may also bring my basket of instruments (tambourines, clave sticks, maracas) into the office as well.

Thanks for this tip!

Melissa Donovan
Writing Forward

Good article… I’ve been freelancing since ‘82, in 4 different houses… Over this progression I found that I would move my desk to the best window looking out as possible. After many years I could finally buy a Northern California home in 01… My reward is to take breaks where I can do simple chores in my back yard. In return I get air, sunshine, a walk, sometimes a chat with a neighbor, and a way to keep the garden growing… one plant, and a few weed pulls at a time.

Here’s a sample of what these breaks have created: http://www.socialalliancenetwork.org/garden.htm

funny thing? i just wrote about chocolate yesterday. really great post btw. I’m not freelancing yet, but this post remind me positive things why i should work freelance.

Thanks

I’ve always thought that the absolute purging of distractions zeitgeist was a little harsh. Good article!

wow, totally agree. the best part about my job is the ability to flip on the turntable and give it a little scratch between logos or web work. i dont know how i could do it without the distractions honestly…

Really great article - I couldn’t agree more and I love the idea of using those “distractions” as rewards. Working in a 1 bedroom apartment means the office (which is in the open plan living area) is pretty much surrounded by every distraction possible, and yet I find I don’t take enough breaks and don’t allow myself the mini rewards throughout the day. I need to change that. Perhaps it is time to kick some Wii tennis butt!

What a fantastic article! This really hits right on the head the reason being a freelancer is so truly alluring. My favorite thing to tell people, when they say “when can you come by and look at this” or “when can we get together”, and they are trying to work around my work schedule, I can confidently tell them “whenever I want too!”, and I believe it! The freedom of freelancing is euphoric.

I’ve thought some on my own time of having rewards for hard work, but something I’ve never implemented. Like you mentioned, I usually have a moment finally where I say, “ok, its time to really buckle down and get this ad done/copy written/computer fixed/virus squashed,” where really I should be saying, “after I squash this pesky virus, I’ll play a game of Tower Defense and squash the goonies!!!” Now that I think about it, I get my cart before my horse… I do something I enjoy (not work wise, since I enjoy my work), then when I feel satisfied that I’ve completed what I want to do, I do work… when it should be the other way around.

This is why I keep up with reading Freelance Switch - epiphanies abound!

That’s how I feel about music. I work MUCH better with music than without - but since I work as a ‘professional’ it is not allowed in the office. If I had my own office, I would be working with music 24/7.

I don’t play the guitar. However, my home office IS also home to my ukulele!

Thanks, everyone, for the comments. I was a little nervous about this one as there’s really no gray ground here. This sort of thing either really works for you or doesn’t work at all, it seems. I’m glad to see there are some other believers out there…as well as some people with the guts to give the method a shot! Seems like a lot you folks are musicians/artists too…we’re coming out of the woodwork aren’t we

Josh and Scott G - Thanks, fellas! I really appreciate it.

Tom - Dude, if I had that many musical instruments around me, I’d be doomed for sure. You’ve taken this to the extreme and I can only applaud you for it.

Lea - Thanks, girl! And welcome to FSw yourself!

Jeremy - I hear you on that one, man. All I have is the Call of Duty 3 demo. Same scene over and over, but I’m totally entranced by it.

Andrew - Thanks, man! Very much appreciated. And you’re totally right on the money with the “I’ll come over whenever I want” bit. As many perks as there are in freelancing, that sort of time independence has got to be one of the best.

I really loved this article as it reminded me that the whole reason I started working freelance just over 6 months ago is so I would have more time to write and record music. It hasn;t happned thus far but I am actually in the middle of painting and sprucing up my new home office for a nice clean start in 2008, and I think having my beautiful Rickenbacker guitars in my office with me will be a great incentive to work harder and faster so I can spend more time playing with them! I think using them as an incentive is a great idea. nice work as always!

This is actually the reason I plan to sell almost everything I have and move into a studio apartment. Combined with the fact that all I do is sleep, eat and design, and watch football on the weekends, it’s ideal to just have one large room with an artists table on one of the room, a computer and a printer on the other side. It’s a matter of privledge for me, really.

As a freelancer i can say that this post is so spot on it put a smile on my face, a joyful smile of recognition. Freelancing isn’t always easy (especially the motivational part, no matter how skilled you are), but once you get some grip on finding that balance on how to combine the pleasant with the necessary, it can make all the difference. This article is exactly about all of that.

Great article!

I’m going to be trying my hand at doing some freelancing work and had the intention of clearing away distractions, but having read this I see that it’s not necessarily a bad thing. I think for me it might be more important to actually clear away and get rid of clutter - once I’m more organised I’m much more productive!