There has been a lot of Q&A happening around the blogosphere in the realm of Location Independence Living.

This has always been an interest of mine.  I love travel and feel cheated compared to the rest of the world with the measly of amount time off each year that US employees blindly accept.

I used to think about this a lot when I was working and how “there must be something better” than what seemed like the drudgery of the same thing day in and day out.  Just waiting until I could get the time off for a vacation or dreaming about a possible early retirement if I saved my pennies.

I realize now after reading, Free Pursuits’ article on the 5 Categories of Life Plans, that I was a ‘Deferred Lifer’ though I didn’t want to be.

The article states that the, “characteristics of this plan include a job with a modest salary or hourly wage, little vacation time and little control over how, when and where you work.”  He goes on to say that, “people who follow this plan focus quite a bit on their retirement options and look forward to that magic age (usually somewhere between 55 and 68) when they can enjoy life without working.”

I know that not everyone views their days and their work this way, but I always did.  It’s not to say that I hated my jobs, because I didn’t.  I always looked to find something to enjoy about my job and my days.  But, working the 9-5 grind was never a dream of mine and it still isn’t.  I love to work and even more so, to earn money.  I just prefer it to be more on my own terms.

Since our family is a dual nation one, it’s a dream of mine to become more location independent in terms of how we earn our living so we will have more flexibility with visiting family.

At my husband’s workplace, where he works in IT, they are about to launch a new work-from-home program where certain employees can choose to work 1 or 2 (or even more) days from home.  You are supposed to have a dedicated office in order to do this, of which we do not.

So, a dedicated office space (with a closed door) is now something that we are adding to our list of considerations when deciding whether or not to move or renovate in the next 2 to 3 years, in order to foster our working towards a more location independent lifestyle.   Once you can prove to your employer that you can successfully do your work outside of the office, it is much easier to then take it on the road with you as well.

Does all of this sound interesting to you too?  Here are some GREAT blogs with all sorts of things to get your thinking….or dreaming.

Location Independant has a great Q&A article with advice from all sorts of Location Independent People (LIP).  The article also mentions some great LIP who have families.  And, since we have two boys, this is of great interest to me.

There is a lot more to consider when you have kids.  The blogs they mention are Tumblewagon and Soultravelers3 (read their great Q&A post as well).  Soultravelers3 also has a great list of blogs of traveling families in their links section, though many seem to be done with their journeys.

Their seem to be quite a few families who save up financially to travel for a fixed period of time, but not as many who are more nomadic and work as they travel.

I would like to read more about those who work as they travel and how exactly they do this.   More about what type of work they are doing.  I like to read what others are doing because it helps me to think outside the box and stretch my idea of what is possible for us.

For a good start, Free Pursuits has a great list from the survey they conducted listing 64 Ways Location Independent People Earn A Living.  Fantastic list, though I don’t know what some of the jobs are.  I believe he’s planning on writing more about his survey results and go more in depth, which should be interesting.

For those who don’t really want to be nomadic, but who just long for more flexibility in where they do their job (ie don’t want to be tied to an office), Muselife has an article about helping to arrange this within your current job that is quite good.

Then of course, one of the masters of Location Independence, Tim Ferris, and his book and website, The 4-Hour Workweek, is also a great read.  Not practical for most of us, but a lot of good tips in there for efficiency.

You can also find even more info by following the #LIP tag on Twitter.

Do you dream of being location independent?  If so, what are you doing to get there?  Or maybe you already are?  If so, share your secrets!

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06/22/2009 | Dreaming, Goals, Link Love.

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