You dream of having a location independent job… one that allows you to work from anywhere. What could be better than waking up with a view of majestic mountains? Or gorgeous woods, or a beautiful meadow full of blossoming flowers? Or perhaps you’d prefer a view of the ocean?

With a location independent job, whether telecommuting or running your own business, this dream could be a reality.

But does working in a beautiful location mean that life is all roses, and you get to play all the time?

Unfortunately, no.

Remote work does not mean time off

There’s this  misperception that people who work remotely don’t actually work… or maybe they don’t work as hard. 

Another variation of this thinking is that working from home gives you complete flexibility in your hours, so you only have to work when you want to. Taken to an extreme, that means you can do whatever you want, whenever you want.

That perception is exemplified in the email I once received from a coworker:

“Looks like today will be the last nice day before the cold weather sets in, so I’m going to work from home today and paint my eaves. - Doug”

Working remotely does provide some flexibility. As described above, remote work can easily translate into location independent work. And if you can work from anywhere, why not workout of your RV from beautiful, awe-inspiring locations?

Additionally, remote work provides some flexibility in your work hours. If you don’t have to interact with coworkers or customers at specific times, then you can choose to start later, or start earlier and get off earlier, or even take breaks in the middle of the day. However, that doesn’t translate into “do whatever you want” or “I’m out in my RV so I don’t really have to work.”

The key word in “work from home” or “location independent work” or “remote work” is present in all three descriptions: Work!

Outside of Doug (quoted above), most telecommuters I know actually work harder than their peers in an office. Why? Because they don’t want to be perceived as slackers; they don’t want people thinking that they aren’t working. So they work extra hard so they can point to tangible results they are producing while working at home.

If you’re running your own company, however, then you don’t have to worry about your boss counting your hours, or your coworkers being jealous and trying to sabotage your work-from-home benefit. However, you still have to do the work: as an entrepreneur, if you don’t do the work, you don’t get paid - and if you don’t get paid, then you don’t eat.

RV Life is not a vacation, which is a good thing!

None of the above goes to say you can’t enjoy the RV life. In a typical vacation from a corporate job, you rush out to your destination, then run around trying to fit everything into the week or so you’re there, and then rush back home… finally arriving home so exhausted you need a vacation to recover from your vacation. (I used to work with a guy who invariably called in sick the first day after his vacation.)

You don’t have to rush like this when you work remotely, though. Yes, you’re putting in full days. But you can stay in an area for weeks, or even months. So instead of rushing around trying to do everything in a few days, you can sightsee a couple of evenings a week and maybe on weekends. 

The result? You get your work done, AND you get to see everything an area has to offer. Nice,right?

Stay tuned: coming up we’ll talk about ways to balance work and life so that you can get your work done and truly enjoy the advantages of being location independent.

Do you work remotely? Or do you dream about working remotely? If you could work from anywhere, where would you be? Please share in the comments below.