Happy Easter!
It took some time to recover from the travel back to the US! While I was not seriously ill, I was profoundly tired, and lacked motivation to do most anything until about the 9th day back home. By then, my stomach smoothed out to normal, although I cannot indulge in coffee the way I did before and during the trip. I am now at my second week at home and feel like its time to get moving again finally.
There is so much to do. In addition to the normal daily family obligations and fun, the work is picking up quickly. I have a website project for a client that I am assisting with, and about 15 other activities that demand attention this week!
Its good that I have such a great team now. I spent a number of years doing project work by myself mostly and that approach has perils and benefits. One benefit of going alone is that you do not have to wait for anyone else to get the work done! If you are willing to work like a maniac, you can accomplish quite a lot, and make a lot of money. The downside is that this is likely to lead to burnout if it goes on like that for too long. Additionally, if you lose your flow, get sick, or whatever, the work derails, and you might not get paid! It is difficult to maintain discipline and good work habits all by yourself for an extended period. That said, if you have a money problem to solve like debt, grow up, get off your ass and fix that now!
If you are doing a Herculean effort to do some project work to pay off some debts, this solo working approach can work fine. I recommend paying your debt off as soon as you can, even if your life sucks for 2 years while doing it. Notice that I put a guideline of 2 years in there…if your life sucks for much more than 2 years, you run the risk of this suck-i-ness becoming your new normal life and nobody’s life should suck over the long term. I would say any grown up can apply discipline and work an extra job, start doing projects as a consultant (give yourself your own job), or whatever they need to for 18 to 24 months. Make a plan, and then go do it! In 2 years your bills will be cleared up and you will have proven something to yourself. I highly recommend cutting the junk you don’t need out of your lifestyle to make this 2 year time frame feasible. If you do not cut your lifestyle extras out, the timeline to paying your debts will be extended, and your life will suck for a long time, or your motivation will fizzle out before you complete the goal.
Whatever your reason for the extra working is, make a plan for achieving a specific goal in 2 years or less, and then go do it already. You do not need TV, you do not need to hang out all night on Friday and drink beer…you need fix your finances while you can.