Number One Goal: To work less

The past week I have wanted to stay home. It was cold and snowy outside - perfect weather for reading, sleeping or blogging or really anything that does not involve leaving the house. And I was tired. I really could have slept or lounged a few days away without any problem. But there was one problem: work.

My clients don't seem to be in tune with the rhythm of my needs for more or less busyness, and they expect me to keep showing up even when I don't want to. Each morning, I have to get up and leave the house to satisfy someone else's wants, and I do it because they pay me to. Some day I would like this to change.

In my ideal future, I would work much less but I would work. Just a little bit of work that gets busy once in a while but then settles right back down. The kind of work that allows me to leave for a few weeks of travelling or take a few days off due to snow. Enough work to pay for a few indulgences or stretch my retirement budget but not enough to feel that I have to do it.

Every night I come back home to my blog and analyze once again how soon I can retire, or how much less I can work and look forward to the day when all this comes true. A week like the past one reminds me of how much I want it. Until then, I must keep braving the cold and smiling at my clients....

Today's billable hours: 5.0
Today's contracted hours: 1.5