Days 322 through 326

Welcome to the first of June! In just a short 30 days, we'll be starting our slow decent through the final half of the year. Please stay seated with your seat belts firmly in position, as I believe it's going to be a bumpy ride! **smile**

I love walking through this life, no matter how quickly it seems to pass. Challenges don't wreck my world, but rather help me to appreciate when times are good or things are going well. I'm just as human as the next person and thus I can become jaded and fail to see what great blessings are around me. When those challenging times come, my usual path to success is to:

1. Define the challenge/problem/issue/opportunity (however you like to name it!).
2. Make a list of the options for overcoming/solving/eradicating (or whatever) the issue.
3. Mark the list to identify the 'viable' options.
4. Select the best option and make a plan; including what can go wrong.
5. Work the plan!
6. Count my blessings!!

Here is this week's challenge (#1: define!):

My company wants me to work remotely for at least 2 days per week, in order to facilitate the sharing of one office space by 2 managers (we're growing and private office space is at a premium). I don't have a problem with this, as I can do my work from the moon, as long as there is reliable WI-FI. However, my house is small and I don't have a private place to work where people on conference calls won't be asking me, "Where are you?" Also, I don't want to turn the place where I sleep (my bedroom) into an office. I rest there! So, the challenge is to find a place (or places) where I can work remotely and quietly without interruption.

Next, I need to make a list of the possible options (#2: options!):

1. I could snag a chair at the local Starbucks and work from there as long as I don't have a conference call. (Have you heard the loud music at the local Starbucks lately?)
2. I could go to my local library and use one of their 'private' study rooms (they are on a first come/first served basis). Again, as long as I don't have a call. These rooms are considered 'quiet' rooms.
3. I could park in a nice shady location and just use my car as an office, as long as Wi-Fi is available or I'm doing work that doesn't require Wi-Fi.
4. I can just make a list of all the 'public' places in the immediate area that offer Wi-Fi and move from place to place based on my current whim.
5. I could find someone who would rent me an office by the day as needed.
6. I could turn my closet into an office (I'd need to put a vent in there so I don't bake in the summertime...oh, and power...I'll need power in there)!
7. I could plan some long weekends around my state and work from a hotel room for a day or so and then enjoy the area.
8. I could plan some long weekends in my sister's city and work from a hotel room up there.
9. I could give up my office and take on a space in my companies building that isn't in a private office.
10. I could work at my companies building every day, just only be in my private office 3 of those days per week.
11. I could use my bedroom (since it is the one room where people don't have to be there during the day) and use a temporary table and chair so there isn't a 'permanent' work space there.
12. I could use a combination of options, leaving me with variety and more opportunities to switch things up!

Okay, so that's my list of solutions. Now, it's time to identify which of these are viable! (#3: In/Out!)

1. Don't like this idea...too loud and too many temptations to eat and drink! Out
2. Actually, I've done this and it worked fine. In
3. I've done this also and it worked. In
4. Okay, that would be nice to research and I bet I amaze myself with the options. In
5. Pay for a private space? NO! Out
6. I'm not working in the closet. Out
7. Okay, but it would not be a long-term solution. In
8. See #7. In
9. I don't prefer this solution at all. Out
10. This would work, but I'll need to identify the spaces where I can land for the day in advance. In
11. I wouldn't call this my top option, but it will work. In
12. Yes, I could do this, too. In

Out of 12 solutions being considered, 8 of them are viable. Not bad!! Finally, I need a plan of action to put one of these into play now.

Here is what I will do (#4: The Plan):

The plan is to take Solution #11 and put it into use with the next day I work from home. For now, I'll be doing that on Thursdays and Fridays. Thursday can be a heavy call day for me, but Friday isn't. Also, my company works on different hours in the summertime, so Fridays are already half-days for me, which just means it will be easier for me.

As I work the plan, what kinds of things could go wrong? (You guessed it! Another list is coming your way!!)

1. The Wi-Fi connection at our house can sometimes stinks. That could be a potential problem. (See #6 below.)
2. I could start having trouble sleeping in the room where I work. (I just have to keep an eye out for this one.)
3. My family will be inconvenienced...a little bit. (They will grow up and forget all about it.)
4. I might have to be flexible about where I work in the house at times (i.e. people sick and need to be in bed, Wi-Fi not working well and need to work closer to hub and etc.). (Yes, I can be flexible, especially if I don't have a conference call planned.)

That's all I can think of for now. I've added notes to each one of these so that I can mitigate as much resulting misery as possible. Okay, now work it HV!

So, that's my challenge for the week and the plan for a successful end to the test. Yes, I used the blog this week to solve a problem, but you don't mind! Do you? I hope not!! I'm likely to do this kind of thing, over and over again! That's it for today. I'm off to finish the final load of Sunday laundry and prepare some supper. Until later when I'll share more of life with The HumbleVoyager, Godspeed, Voyagers!!