The Future Is Now

There's an article on charlotteobserver.com today in which tech execs say that by 2020, the line between work and home will virtually vanish.

2020?

I don't know about your house, but work/home lines around here are rather fuzzy today.

I know so many home workers and home office experts who talk about and blog about the delineation of work and home activities -- the importance of separating work from home, establishing work routines and clocking out at a certain time -- but for many home workers that's just not feasible or practical or even desirable. If you're the type who likes writing her blog at 3 a.m. (anyone with young children knows that's one of the best quiet times), then there's nothing wrong with that. If you're the kind of person who frets about these things, then you should be establishing more boundaries in your work/home environment. But I think it's true that the people who are able to embrace the idea of working outside the traditional lines will be better equipped to handle the future trends in the workplace which will only continue to further blur our work/home lives.

Truth be told, I do try to carve out vacations without work, but there are times when that's not possible, like this year when there I was tapping away at a computer keyboard in a Hershey, Pa. hotel room while the kids were asleep in order to meet a deadline. And I'm okay with that. I think that's because as long as I feel like I'm in control of my schedule, I don't mind the occasional working vacation or answering business calls at the soccer field.

Perhaps there will come a time when I will be writing this blog at 3 a.m. not because I want to, but because I have to. One of the best things about working from home is being able to create my own schedule. If and when I am no longer able to do that, when I am being forced to keep up with a round-the-clock working universe, then the result may very well be as Victoria Nash of the Oxford Internet Institute warns in the aforementioned article: "Longer, less-efficient working hours and a more stressful home life."

And that I'm not so okay with.

In Defense of Workaholics

You gotta love Jay Leno.

The man's got fame and fortune, and after saying goodbye to The Tonight Show next year, he'll be doing a one hour, nightly show on NBC, according to news reports.

The man apparently loves to work. Even now, he's off doing stand-up gigs on days when he's not taping his show.

My mom, too, loves to work. Earning money and participating in the economic machine. Being relevant in the workforce. Being a role model to her kids and grandkids.

"You're just like her," my husband said to me yesterday. "You like to be busy."

True that. And for me, the best is working toward a goal -- publishing a book, getting your master's, starting a business (perhaps an online magazine for home workers?), learning a new craft or skill -- while you're busy doing your day job.

But not everyone likes to go that extra mile -- especially if there's only a slim possibility of a payoff.

I have a neighbor, a closet writer, who asked me for advice once about how to get published. She was working as an assistant teacher, but had been told that she has what it takes to be a professional writer, which was her dream. I read some of her stuff, and it was good! Excited, I talked with her at length about pitching magazines, scouring the internet for literary agents who might be interested in her pieces, writing query letters, how to follow-up, etc. She looked at me quizzically afterward and said, "I don't want to have to do all that..."

Is it any surprise that after 7 years she's still unhappy and teaching?

I have a special place in my heart for "hustlers": People who love to work and work and work, whether it's to follow a dream, make boatloads of money, or just for the thrill or challenge of it.

You rock, Jay Leno!