Workflow: Freelance» AJ Leon

Workshifting While in Prague

AJ Leon — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 11:10:04 +0000

Oh, Prague, how I love thee. Because relatively few houses and sites were destroyed in World War II, much of its old-world charm remains. The home of Kafka is very much the same as it was in the 14th Century. So much beauty. Old Town. The Charles Bridge. The Astronomical Clock. The Estates Theatre (where Mozart first performed Don Giovanni). Fantastically designed and well-kept buildings appear wherever you look.

But equally as fantastic as all of that, it is a great environment for digital nomads like us. Wi-Fi is prolific. The mobile networks are better than average for Eastern Europe. ...

Staying Productive While Traveling in England

AJ Leon — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 15:45:44 +0000

I love England. It may not be exotic, but it's one of my favorite countries in the world. And this year I've been lucky enough to spend about 3 months here on and off. Last year around this same time I did a post about workshifting while in England. I decided to shoot an update post with some tips, tricks and hacks to show you how to workshift here most effectively. 

If you can't view the video below, you can watch it over on YouTube.

Got any tips about workshifting in England? I'd love to hear 'em in the ...

Email is Your Worst Enemy

AJ Leon — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 18:05:59 +0000

I've spent the last month planning and preparing for the work of 2011. I will be doing a great deal more writing, speaking and as if it's even possible, I will be traveling even more in 2011 than 2010. Knowing this, I spent the last month using various tools to analyze how, where and when I use my time. The results proved that the greatest thief of my time has, of course, been email. So, I'm kicking the "always on inbox" habit with a few little changes I talk about in this video.

(If you can't view the below video, check it out here .)

What are some of your tips for kicking email addiction?

Taking Time to Refuel

AJ Leon — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 17:55:38 +0000

After having run out of gas, I had a thought on the side of a lonely highway in Utah during our Rise of the Cubicle Farmer road trip and it made me think about how sometimes we may push too hard, too fast. Sometimes the best decision might be to rest and regroup and start fresh instead of pushing it to no end, particularly when you miscalculate when the end may be. This could be the end of a project launch, business idea, etc. Here's a video I took while on the side of the road.

Do you take time to refuel?

An Alternative to Renting Cars While Traveling

AJ Leon — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 03:21:55 +0000

If you are a workshifter, chances are you travel. And if you travel, chances are you rent cars. And if you rent cars, chances are you have come close to strangling a rental car clerk or customer service agent at some point. The process just sucks. Enter Zipcar, an unbelievably innovative process for rental cars that won't make you want to gouge your eyes out. I've used them in five cities now, always painless. They are a workshifters dream.

Here's my video review we filmed while in a Zipcar on our way to the 140 Characters Conference in Boston:

Stepping Away from the Keyboard

AJ Leon — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 14:39:11 +0000

You know what really bugs me about the idea of 9 to 5?

It insinuates that every human works in the same manner and that every day we feel exactly the same as the day before.

Here's what I mean. I like getting up early in the morning, taking a run, prepping my oatmeal and diving directly into work early (sometimes way before 9). But right around 3, I always lose my will to sit in front of a computer screen. At that time, depending on where I am in the world, I either go for a walk, take a nap, or go somewhere interesting (museum, park, etc). After that, I'll get back to work and usually be on and off until the wee hours of the night.

However, a couple days ago, I had a rough morning and hit a block around midday. I found myself half working, half thinking and half surfing the web. I lost my focus. So instead of having a ridiculously unproductive day and "grinding it out" until 5, I decided to stop, shut down, regroup and return to my work when I was ready for it.

Learning when to step away from the keyboard is an incredibly valuable asset. Not only will it will keep you from burnout, but more importantly it will make you recognize that every moment should have impact when sitting in front of that monitor.

It makes absolutely no sense to work at half speed. It's like going to the gym and half-assing a workout that takes four hours when you could have easily been 100% focused and completed it in 90 minutes.

Every human is different. Every day is different. Don't feel guilty when you need to step away. It's about value added not time spent.

Photo Credit: niallkennedy

Workshifting on a Train – Part 2

AJ Leon — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 21:02:42 +0000

Okay, so I have returned from my workshifting train trip from NYC to Miami, and yes I am fully aware of how crazy that sounds. I traveled on Amtrak for the duration of the trip using something that's called a USA Rail Pass. Basically, you receive 8 segments in 15 days for just under 400 dollars, which considering how late I booked it, is a pretty good deal. It was a total over over 60 travel hours.

Look, its no surprise that taking a train that distance will not be as time efficient as air travel. However, I decided to take a train to mix things up a bit and investigate whether workshifting was indeed possible all the way up and down the East Coast.

Now, for the question of whether I remained productive. You know how when you get on a plane, you can just crank out work because there are no distractions? Yeah, it was like that, except for 60 hours instead of six. It was beautiful.

From a workshifters perspective, Amtrak trains are pretty solid. They boast big, comfy chairs, probably the equivalent of First Class on most airlines. They also have working outlets for each passenger so you can stay charged up at all times. And of course, you can't beat the scenery. No, the normal trains do not have WiFi, only some commuter trains do. But I use Verizon Wireless broadband anyway which is built into my netbook. I was very impressed with Verizon's service. I had access to WiFi for the entire trip. There were plenty of spots where I had no cell phone coverage on my T-Mobile Android device but was able to keep working on my netbook.

All in all, the trip was fantastic. I was able to remain just as productive if not more so, while soaking up beautiful scenery, meeting some very interesting people and visiting some cool spots in the US. I love experimenting and pushing the boundaries with workshifting because I believe we have reached a point (at least in most of the developed world) where work is truly what you do and not where you sit. The ability to workshift is not just about productivity and connectedness, its about freeing yourself to take an adventure and bring your work along with you. And that's exactly what I continue planning to do. :)

A Workshifting Experiment: Taking a Train from New York City to Miami

AJ Leon — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 13:48:20 +0000

Since December 15, 2009, Melissa and I have been home for about 15 days. Last week, we returned from a 91 day workshifting trip in Europe, and decided to ground ourselves in the East Village for a few weeks before our next adventure. Problem: My little brother, who I call Boy, is graduating and he lives in Miami.

At this point, I am absolutely exhausted at the thought of another short haul flight. So, I decide to do the only natural thing any workshifting nomad would do...take a train to Miami from New York City.

I just got a new netbook, and of course am rocking Verizon Wireless broadband card as usual. I am actually curious to see if I can stay productive while traveling down the entire East Coast on an Amtrak.
P.S. The hashtag for this little experiment is #imonatrain.

The Deliberate Workshifter

AJ Leon — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 14:56:31 +0000

Some people workshift because they can. Some view workshifting as a triumph of technology, others a triumph of humanity. At my company, we workshift deliberately. We believe that it empowers our staff as well as ourselves to add value and remain creative. We believe that people work differently, and they should be able to decide how and where to do it. We view work as "art", and artists always have distinct methods of extracting their best.

If you are a small business owner and you workshift deliberately it's important to be able to articulate why you workshift as you begin working with larger and more traditional clients.

The reason is simple. If you don't have a good answer, it just might make you look small. But if you do have a good answer, it just might make you look innovative.

What do you think?

To Starbucks, From Workshifters: Thank You!

AJ Leon — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 15:30:38 +0000

As much as I love supporting local coffee shops, sometimes when I travel, particularly in Europe, I frequent Starbucks. Why? For workshifting purposes. I ain't on a vacation, baby, I have a business to run. They always have a multitude of outlets, plenty of open space, don't mind you camping out for a day. And, of course, the seminal ingredient for any workshifters needs - WIFI (not free, though).

But now, they have done something that will make workshifters the world over rejoice!

What do you think?

What Workshifters Can Learn From Artists

AJ Leon — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 15:37:58 +0000

"Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer. Go some distance away because then the work appears smaller and more of it can be taken in at a glance and a lack of harmony and proportion is more readily seen."

Leonardo da Vinci

This makes perfect sense for a painter who is an arm's length away from his work most of the day. Its only once he climbs off his scaffold and glances at a full view of his work that he can see clearly the areas that need improvement. I feel like a painter sometimes.

Why can't we take this same approach for the projects we are working on. Often, we get so mired in the day to day stuff that it becomes increasingly diificult for us to remember what the whole picture looks like and to get creative with its direction.

(Shot at Mont Saint Michel, France)

How do you get a clear picture of your business projects?

Work Poetry: Thoughts from Barcelona

AJ Leon — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 14:12:25 +0000

About three months ago, I was in Barcelona, Spain speaking at a conference. Barcelona is a town teeming with hidden art. You will quite literally be walking down a conventional downtown road, only to look down a corridor and find a sculpture, which you may not understand, but speak to you. During our time, there I really began to think about our work.

Is our work just that - "work"? Or can it, should it be something more?

Workshifitng with a Mobile Phone: Novelty or Necessity?

AJ Leon — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 19:01:02 +0000

Here's a story. About a month ago I was at a wedding in the Florida Keys.

It was a great night that ended with everyone, in full wedding gear, jumping in the pool. My little brother also happened to jump in the pool. Unfortunately he had his iPod Touch, his phone and my phone (my precious G1) in his pocket.

So for a month, I went without a phone. It was during this time that I realized just how much I use my mobile for actual workshifting. It's beyond just novelty, I was probably half as productive last month without my phone. I missed meetings. I couldn't connect with my team. I was late to meetings. I wrote less blog posts. I created less content. My twitter friends thought I was dead ... more than once.

Here's a list of some of the apps I use for particular purposes while workshifting. (I'm an Android boy, but most or all are also available on iPhone)

Organization
Google Calendar
Evernote

Communication
Seesmic
Google Voice
Yammer
Google Talk

Travel
TripIt
FlightCast

Content Creation
Tumblr
Qik
PixelPipe
Wordpress (by Automattic)

What mobile phone applications do you use that help you workshift on the go?

Can Producing Webinars Help You Become Global?

AJ Leon — Mon, 24 May 2010 16:31:07 +0000

So, about a week ago, I was 5 minutes from producing a premium Webinar, which we do many of at my company. And the thought occurred to me ... Here I am, based in New York City but working in Stratford-upon-Avon at the moment, about to produce a premium (meaning "not free") webinar where over 50 organizations will be participating, representing 5 different countries on two continents.

My immediate thought, "How the hell did my little company become an international business?". We drive over 50% of our revenue from International relationships. The answer of course lies in the times we live. There are SO much incredible software available, like GoToWebinar, that allow small business to act like big business.

Tools like this have democratized the playing field. They empower those with ambition and ingenuity to economically maintain even international relationships that drive revenue and awareness. If you are a small business and do any sort of teaching/training, I strongly suggest you check out GoToWebinar.

What do you think? Do you have any Webinar hosting experiences?

Disclosure: I have had a sponsored GoToWebinar account for a few months now. Also, from time to time, my company does some interesting projects with Citrix Online ... mainly because we think they kick ass ;)

The Greatest Benefit of Workshifting: The Life Shift

AJ Leon — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 18:52:36 +0000

Is workshifting a more effective work environment than a cubicle farm? Yes. From an organizational basis are there financial benefits? Yes. Are there efficiency benefits? Yes. Will employees be more content and empowered with this freedom? Yes. There are countless benefits to a workshifting environment, but what about the individual? What are the benefits for us? And are we taking full advantage of them?

My Little Black Book

AJ Leon — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 17:08:54 +0000

Sitting on the train, riding in a plane, laying in bed, sipping a coffee. Wherever you are. Whatever you are doing. You need to have a way to record your moments of inspiration.

What do you use to jot down your ideas?

Workshifting, SXSW style

AJ Leon — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:00:27 +0000

SXSW was a great place to network, learn and do business. I was not sure how much work I would be able to get done and was a bit skeptical about the wifi at the Austin Convention Center, but was pleasantly surprised. There were outlets everywhere provided by Chevy, plenty of tables and chairs and reliable wifi.

What are your thoughts? How did you workshift at sxsw?

Sharing, Engagement and Serendipity

AJ Leon — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 14:00:03 +0000

In social media we understand and accept the principles of sharing, engaging and being open to serendipity. We benefit from engaging and sharing information with people online to form new friendships and working relationships. But how often do we ignore these same social media principles in "real life"? How many times do we sit in the coffee shop working all day with our headphones in trying not to make eye contact with the person sitting next to us?

I share my thoughts on sharing, engagement, and serendipity in a short video....

Your thoughts?

Photo Credit: Medmoiselle T

Choosing a Place to Stay While Traveling

AJ Leon — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 13:18:22 +0000

One of the most fundamental elements of planning any trip is where to stay. At the moment, I am on a very long trip that, in the end, will span 3 continents and several countries. Locating and booking affordable accommodations that provide what is important to me can become a pain sometimes. For the past year, I have leveraged the collective wisdom of both Yelp and Foursquare to assist in these searches. Below is a quick video post identifying the items I look for in accommodations while on workshifting trip.

What are the things you look for when searching for a place to stay?

What’s in Your Gear Bag?

AJ Leon — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 13:39:02 +0000

I was asked recently by a good friend on mine what was in my bag. It was part of a blog post she wrote, What's in Yo' Bag, and I have decided to respond in a video. My bag consists of many things to keep me inspired, connected and able to be on the go.

What's in your workshifting gear bag? Empty out your workshifiting bag, take a picture, upload it to Flickr, tag it "workshifting" and link it up in the comments below. We'll gather all of the photos and blog posts together for a future post.

The Need to Disconnect

AJ Leon — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 20:04:50 +0000

Connectedness is a tricky thing it can be both necessary and debilitating. This week has been incredibly busy and got me thinking about productivity. When it come to 'getting things done' sometimes disconnecting takes precedence.

If you can't view this video, you can find it over on my Vimeo channel.

Are there specific times during the day that you disconnect?

Organizing Your Travel with TripIt

AJ Leon — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:33:32 +0000

I am on a long work related trip right now. Actually, I have four different business trips that end with the beginning of the next. This workshifting trip will keep me away from home for 65 days. So, naturally, I have travel on the mind.

I have been thinking about how to remain productive while traveling, and I will probably be sharing some of the things I have learned with you in the next few posts. Yesterday, I was at Denver International Airport and decided to post a review on TripIt, an application for travelers that allows you to easily and seamlessly build trip itineraries. I have used this app for a long time, and find it very useful.

If you can't view this video, you can check it out over on my Vimeo channel.

Have you used Tripit or similar apps? What are your thoughts?

Photo Credit: 704 Race

Bookkeeping 2.0: Managing Your Books While on the Go

AJ Leon — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 13:37:13 +0000

Like most of you, I travel ... A TON. Last year, Melissa and I traveled about 55% of the year. I absolutely adore traveling! We purposefully built our business this way. However, one of the very difficult elements about traveling so often is being able to effectively manage your bookkeeping while on the road. During the course of our travels last year, we became very serious about finding the best online tools to help us with this incredibly annoying problem.

On Saturday, we are departing for a very long 62 day workshifting trip that will take us through three continents. I thought it might be helpful to post a little video on what we use to keep our accounting in order while we are on the road.

If you can't view this video, head over to my Vimeo channel.

The three applications that I discussed during the video are:

Are there other apps that you use? What are some of your favorites?

Photo Credit: The Shifted Librarian

Workshifting Tips While on Vacation

AJ Leon — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 17:51:07 +0000

It's New Year's and as I write this I am within 100 yards of the immaculate Niagara Falls. In a completely random sequence of events, I'm in an RV driving across the moose-filled terrain of Canada (For all you Twitter fiends out there, the hashtag for our current adventure is #rvcanada ).

Melissa and I always take the last week of one year and the first week of the next and get as far away from life as we can in order to reflect about the past and dream about the future. Technically, we are on vacation. But just like most of you, we can't afford to be away from "work" for that long. So what do we do? We have learned the fine art of workshifting while on holiday.

I decided to shoot a quick video giving you a few tips for workshifting while on vacation.

Do you workshift while on vacation? What tips would you suggest to others?

Photo by: melissaleon

Benefits of Workshifting Instead of Working from an Office

AJ Leon — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 12:50:22 +0000

Recently, I've spent some time hanging out at a couple of our clients' offices and I realized something. Workshifting is not only beneficial for the worker, but also for the organization. Working in a traditional office setting definitely has some inherent benefits, including centralization and camaraderie. However, it also has what I believe are elemental detriments.

In this video, I outline three issues that I feel organizations should consider when deciding whether a virtual working arrangement might behoove them.

Don’t Underestimate Face to Face Communication

AJ Leon — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:21:29 +0000

This past summer, Melissa and I were gone on a Workshifting Road Trip across Europe. We were gone for sixty days. During that time, we had more staff miscommunication and misunderstanding than we had in the previous 10 months combined. Shortly after, I realized why. No matter how well we use technology to connect and collaborate, nothing will ever be able to replace "face to face" communication. Having said that, "face to face" doesn't mean you actually have to be physically present with the person (although that would be ideal). A quick 5 minute daily video call with your team can do the trick.

In the video below, I discuss a few reasons I believe this is important and a few tools that might be helpful to you.

Do you think "face to face" communication is important? How often do you video call with you team while you are traveling?

Photo by: oxmour

Measuring Productivity on Adding Value vs Wasting Time

AJ Leon — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:54:27 +0000

Many years ago, in a galaxy far far away, I used to work in a Big Four firm. This was probably the worst time in my life, but that's another post for another day. The Big Four are a prestigious set of assurance & consulting firms that have a four-way lock on the Fortune 500 Assurance market. The corporate culture in these firms is an atrocity.

Beyond the conventional cut throat, cubicle farm ideologies so indicative of the typical corporate aura, the management of these firms exude an embarrassingly obtuse comprehension of productivity. What is their logical misstep you ask? They directly correlate Time Spent with Value Added. In other words, some preppy, clean shaven kiss ass who gets can sit intently in front of his computer for 15 hours a day during busy season and without thought or analysis, his Time Spent is made synonymous with Value Added.

Our idea of Productivity matters. The amount of hours you spend with your face glued to your laptop screen is NOT indicative of your productivity. At the Big Four, the street smart kids quickly realized this poignant reality. The firm billed out on the basis of hours booked. They made their money on the amount of Time Spent, not on Value Added. So during "busy season" you were going to be sitting in the same room for 15 hours a day whether you actually did anything or not. It is a vicious cycle of misplaced value association. Most of us would sit there, laptops churning, looking attentive, tippity tapping at our keys all day, all the while 30 - 40% of the day, we'd be just be surfin the interwebs. Why did we do this? To satiate "face time" , of course. Even if you work twice as efficient as your co-workers, you can't be the one to leave early, take a two hour break midday to get a second wind, or bill out less than your colleagues because if you do, you can kiss your bonus and your reputation bye-bye.

Here's some simple math for you: Time Spent does not equal Value Added.

Oh, so you work until 2am everyday. Congratu-freaking-lations! You've just won a shiny gold watch. Do you think that makes you productive? No. No, it doesn't. In fact, it probably means you cannot manage time effectively and you spend a great deal of hours doing things at half speed because you're tired or busted.

Here's some difficult math for you: Value Added equals X

That's right, instead of taking your ques from Henry Ford and Ronald McDonald, you need to spend some time (and I mean serious time) figuring out what exactly would constitute adding value for your organization, team, small business or solo practice on a yearly, monthly, weekly and daily basis.

Looking at time spent on things is the easy way out. It's the Least Common Denominator and that's not you. Or at least it shouldn't be.

If you manage staff, treat them like people and not like well paid cattle. People are smart. If your staff feels like they are being branded and evaluated based on the hours they sink into projects rather than the value they add, they'll give you exactly what you are asking for ... "empty calorie" hours. You don't want that. You want dense hours. If your people are going to sit down to work, you want them to be as productive as possible while they do that, so they can enjoy their lives and not return tomorrow disgruntled and miserable, ruing the day of your conception.

Over the past year, we have hired four staff. Want to know the first thing I said to all of them? "I don't give a damn how many hours you work". We sit down and collaboratively define what their role is and how value would be measured and use that as our barometer.

Honestly, its one of the reasons I heart workshifting. A "Value Added" paradigm is built into it.

How do you define productivity? How do you value your staff's productivity?

Photo by: Menage a Moi

Social Workshifting and Why It’s Important

AJ Leon — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:17:37 +0000

Working on your own can be one of the most liberating feelings. But it can also become very lonely when we leave the corporate nest. We're humans dammit. And although, as workshifters, we despise being consigned as cubicle farmers, we still need camaraderie; we still need interaction; and we still need water cooler banter about the season finale of Mad Men.

As of a few months ago, I have the luxury of workshifting with my beautiful wife and business partner. However, prior to that, I was all on my lonesome, sauntering the East Village for Coffee Shops that would bestow upon me a free outlet and a cold iced coffee. After a few weeks, I realized something. In the words of Dr. Tobias Funke: "There are dozens of us! DOZENS!!" (If you don't get that reference, stop reading this post and please rent this immediately). There are tons of other workshifters out there! If you are a power workshifter, you have to be social while workshifting.

Here's a quick video with a few thoughts on why I think social workshifting is important:

Are you social while workshifting? Any neat stories on people you've met while workshifting?

Photo by: thinkpublic

Workshifting in the Cloud

AJ Leon — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 18:44:49 +0000

Last week I had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with Steve Bristol and Allan Branch, the founders of Less Everything. Our company uses both Less Accounting and Less Time Spent, two cloud based, small business applications that the duo has developed. (Disclosure: I would make love to both of these apps if they were women, and Melissa would approve). It led to a lot of great internal discussions regarding my proclivity towards cloud based business apps.

I am a massive proponent of cloud based technology for a variety of reasons, but namely because that's where I feel we're headed so why not dive in head first now. I decided to post a video talking about why I'm big on cloud computing, which cloud based apps I use, and of course why I feel these applications empower workshifting.

Cloud-Based Apps I use for my business:

Gmail - Mail Server
Google Calendar - Team Calendar
Google Docs - Collaborative Docs/Spreadsheet (Blog Post Backup)
Less Accounting - Easy Accounting Program
Less Time Spent - Track Time and Expenses on a Client Basis
Basecamp - Project Management System
Batchbook - Customer Relationship Management
Box.net - File Sharing and Collaboration
Protoshare - Website Wireframing Application (For Internal & Client Projects)
Yammer - Twitter for Business
Google Wave - Collaborative Workspace
TinyChat - Video and Chat for Multiple Users (Team Meetings)
ConceptShare - Collaborate on Design Direction

What cloud-based apps do you find useful for your day-to-day needs?

Thoughts on Poetry in Business

AJ Leon — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:00:00 +0000

"Disturb us, Lord, when we are too pleased with ourselves, when our dreams have come true because we dreamed too little,when we arrived safely because we sailed too close to the shore." - Sir Francis Drake, 1577

"Should we be spending millions of dollars getting to Mars during a down economy?" Recently a friend of mine tweeted out this question. I answered in the affirmative, and was immediately challenged by good friend of mine in New York. This tumulted into a regular 'ole 140 character style debate. In summary, he appealed to the fact that so many in our country are unemployed and un-insured or under-insured. This conversation got me thinking about the importance of poetry. And particularly the importance of poetry in business.

(Let me just say, irrespective of your political thoughts on this issue, I assure you, my point is a philosophical one and not a political one.)

He's right. Things are bad right now. Maybe we should just shut down the whole freaking space program. It's all a bunch of dweeby math geniuses with "Peter Pan" syndrome living out their Star Wars inspired childhood fantasies. Isn't it? I mean in times like these, there seems to be no pragmatic rationale that would lead us to look to the stars. We have to fix the problems we have, we don't have time for that stuff.

See what I did right there. We always seem to relegate the idea of adventuring and pioneering and exploring to a subservient status. They always have a seat somewhere, it's just never at the grown ups table. But c'mon, they're noisy, they're messy, they're annoying, they're kinda weird and they don't understand the serious, the "real" issues. The dreamers, the inventors, the explorers, the crazies...the poets... they still get to sit down of course, it's just at the clown shaped, water-colored kiddie table in the corner. Until, that is, they discover America or turn on a light bulb or make men fly or help us easily connect with loved ones across the world in one click.

There is this false sense of maturity in business. We can analyze, but we can't dream up something new, because that's a waste of time. Especially during hard times. During hard times, we're told to "hunker down" and "keep our nose to the grindstone" as if that will make it better. As if focusing on the same problems will ever get us where we want to go. As if the practicality of removing our eyes from the glitter of the horizon is somehow more sound and logical. Someone has to keep dreaming, dammit! Especially during the hard times. I am completely cognizant that sometimes a storm may befall us and shift more of our focus on problems that need to be fixed now. But if that's all we do, then we will never actually get anywhere.

No matter how tight your margins are now, no matter how close you get to missing your rent payment, no matter how slammed your back is against the wall NEVER underestimate the importance of conceptualizing new frameworks, anticipating new trends, exploring new methods, of dreaming and adventuring and pressing into the unknown and uncomfortable. As workshifters, we have unique challenges, but in many ways, we are also pioneers. We thought, "hmmm, maybe there is a different way to do this working thing", "maybe everyone else has been doing it wrong". Keep doing that. Keep questioning. Keep challenging paradigms. Yep, even in the hard times.

Recently, someone I desperately admire said, "this is business, there's no room for romance". That is both incredibly disheartening and one of the dumbest things I have heard in all my life on this earth. Business is not played in a vacuum, it isn't so damn special that it gets its own silo. Exploring, adventuring, dreaming - that's all a part of life, and for most of us, its the part that makes it worth living. Poetry is not only an element of business, it is the most important element.

Since the beginning of time, the pragmatists have always laughed at the dreamers, at the poets, but for the most part, its the poets that inspire us and its the poets we remember. Yes, we have to keep dreaming about Mars. Why? Because it's next.

Do you spend enough thinking about new ways to do old things? Thinking about what the world will look like in 5 years, 2 years, 6 months and how you can prepare and capitalize on that?

Photo by: Diana Kimball

Inflight Workshifting Tips

AJ Leon — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 13:01:19 +0000

While sitting on the tarmac at Dubai International Airport I wanted to check in and share some of my inflight workshifting tips. With all of the international travel that I've been doing lately, it has become essential to develop a method for working from the tiny confines of an airplane seat.

If you have trouble viewing this video, you can also catch it over on my Vimeo channel.

Do you fly a lot? Make sure you check about these tips from Chris Brogan about what you can do pre-flight, inflight and once you land to help for smoother travels.

What are some of your inflight workshifting tips?

Creativity Without Capital

AJ Leon — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:29:11 +0000

Innovation is the offspring of necessity.

I've had the great privilege to visit many African countries, and I'll tell you what, there is no greater sense of innovation that I have witnessed than on this continent. Most people are shocked whenever I say that, but it's actually congruent with our experience in the developed world. The greatest innovations are usually created and architecting from inception with little or no capital. The coolest apps typically commence as the visionary exploits of a few nerds that are broke, locking themselves in their basements, gleefully coding their life away fueled by diet coke and twinkies.

Typically, when people think of this continent, they think of the need. There is indeed a lot of that. However, its in the chamber of this need that creativity is no longer an option but a necessity. What does this have to do with workshifting you ask? Everything! Workshifters are notoriously dealing with tight budgets, razor thin margins and aggressive schedules. If there is one lesson I have absorbed from the time I spent in Tanzania it is this, in order to extract the most of our creativity, in order to truly innovate, it is imperative that we challenge our concept of problem solving.

Here I share my thoughts while I was workshifting from Tanzania a couple weeks ago. If you can't view this video, you can check it out on my Vimeo channel.

When a problem, issue or opportunity arises in the next week, ask yourself: 'How would I approach this if I had no capital?

Photo by: Wayan Vota

Workshifting in Kenya

AJ Leon — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:09:26 +0000

Having spent the past couple weeks, working in Africa, I thought it might be a good idea to post a quick video about what it is like to workshift from this continent.

There are definitely many more challenges compared to our workshifting in the developing world. The infrastructure is weak. The ISP's blow. And finding a shop with WiFi that can load Gmail would be like finding a bar of gold in your next bowl of Cheerios. However, workshifting is possible in many areas because of the significant investment made over the past five years by mobile providers such as Zain, Safaricom and Vodacom.

On the border of Kenya, I recorded some of my thoughts on workshifting in Africa.

If you can't see the video below, you can also find it hiding over here.

Ice Cream Tacos & The Art of Bartering

AJ Leon — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0000

When I was sophomore in high school my friend Eric and I had an agreement. This agreement was based on a mutual and symbiotic arrangement that provided us both with relative equitable value with respect to the services we were in need of at the time. It wasn't contractual, however, in retrospect that would've added a layer of texture to this tale that would've made a good story a great one. It was fairly simple really.

Eric was scrawny and got his ass beat for running his mouth. Eric's rich parents happened to provide him with an unlimited supply of snack tickets. I too had run into this "ass beating" problem, except a bit earlier on in life and had judiciously picked up weight training as a preemptive maneuver to thwart such attacks in high school. So I was a pretty big dude. I was also as poor as poor could be, and never had the money to purchase the snack tickets that were necessary to acquire the most coveted commodity of my fourteenth year of existence...the ice cream taco.

So here we were, Eric and I, him with his rich kid snack tickets and me with my overly developed frame. I possessed the ability to provide a service that Eric needed, protection from the punks in eleventh grade. Conversely, he was able to distribute a product that I needed to acquire my beloved ice cream taco, snack tickets. It was a quid pro quo match made in pre-adolescent heaven.

In spite of what some scholarship may postulate, "barter economics" have been existence since the advent of recorded history. The best example of this is articulated in the Sumerian poem "The Wooing of Inanna". Dumuzid, the fifth king of Sumeria, is trying to hook up with the goddess Inanna, but she doesn't want any piece of him because he is a smelly, dirty, old shepherd. After a great deal of posturing and cajoling, Damuzid throws down his pocket aces, fresh milk with cream. To which Inanna expeditiously requests that he "plow her damp field".

The concept of bartering has been something that I have begun to engage in a bit more frequently due to the economic climate. As workshifters we have to be scrupulous and wise during these times. Bartering may not generate income, but it affords us the opportunity to mitigate expenses. In the video below, I talk about our latest barter agreement with a local coffee shop.

Do you see value in bartering as a workshifter? What barter agreements have you or could you pursue?

Photo by: ms.Tea

Blogging and Cheese Sandwiches

AJ Leon — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:00:47 +0000

"Why should I blog?"

"How the hell would blogging help my organization?"

"Can't I hire someone to blog for me?"

"I hardly have time for 'real' work, why would I waste my time blogging."

"Blogging is for people who sustain themselves on HoHo's and Diet Coke and live in their grandmother's basement."

These are actual quotes from people I have spoken to about blogging recently.

I've been thinking a great deal lately about blogging, and it's importance as a medium not necessarily for marketing but for delineation.

As we progress into the deciduous and ever-evolving landscape of the social web, blogging has, in a way, been relegated to the margins of social web status. When I was in 5th grade in our school cafeteria, there was a table towards the back, furthest from the teachers, where all the cool, rich kids would sit with their Cheetos and their slick hair and their Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Pez Dispensers. At the time, I would have choked a baby bunny to sit at that table, but there were only so many seats, and I was still 20 lbs overweight and didn't know who Michael Jordan was. Now the cool kid table is all Twitter and Brightkite and Foursquare and virtually every iPhone app...but poor blogging is like me, fat and alone with his cheese sandwich, ruing the day he left home.

Well, I am here to tell you, that blogging is still cool, dammit! In fact, I would postulate that blogging should not supplement, but should indeed serve as the foundation, the very substratum of our communication strategy. It's less about marketing and more about delineation. You have something important to say and chances are even if we work in the same field, you have an uncommon perspective that is unique and possess a viewpoint that is indigenous to you alone.

If you read nothing else in this post, the takeaway is this: Blogging affords us the opportunity to define the textures of our dissimilarity.

Inspired by blogging and all it's resplendent geekness, I have posted a video for the handful of you that didn't fall asleep while reading this rant ;)

So that makes me wonder, do you blog? Why or Why Not?

If so, why do you value blogging?

On a side note, in June, my friend, Daria Steigman (who is infinitely wiser than I on this topic), wrote an article for the International Association of Business Communicators on the notion of "Blogging for Business Value". I would definitely suggest reading her post as it has served as the inspiration for my obsession with this topic over the last few weeks.

Photo by: Kristina B

Churchill and The Importance of Routine

AJ Leon — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 12:47:51 +0000

There is no one I know that exhorts the concept of working independently more than I do. If you've ever read any of my posts, I probably seem like a creepy Workshifting Evangelist, preaching down the archaic, dehumanizing cubicle farms that rich executives use to subjugate their employees because it feels better than empowering them...okay, there I go again.

However, if there is one thread of verity that we should embrace from the tyrannical enclaves of the traditional corporate world it is this. Routine is indeed important. In fact, I would actually posit that maintaining some construct of routine is far more important for a workshifter than for a traditional employee. Now let's back up for second, by routine of course I don't mean "9 to 5" routine as I feel that as workshifters we inherently (and intentionally) smudge the lines between work time and play time. What I do mean is a daily schedule, some regiment or form to your day that makes it both productive and effective no matter where you find yourself.

But developing some sort of daily architecture or schedule is of incredible importance and here's why. As independent workers, workshifters, digital nomads, whatever you want to call us, we are agile. We are flexible. We are mobile. We use technology to allow us to make a living while working from coffee shops and airports! It's nuts! I literally feel like I am living in Back to the Future II sometimes, minus the hoverboards (much to the chagrin of all children of the '80's).

However, as with most freedoms, the converse serves up an equally potent dystopia. Mobility is freeing for sure, but if we don't watch it, we can very easily become unproductive and inefficient, and being that we report to...ourselves, this can obviously become a dangerous cycle for our careers and livelihood. Embracing mobility without some form of daily structure can lend itself to anarchy. Outside of a formal schedule, it's just far more natural for us to devolve into disorganization and scattered efficacy. In other words, we can find ourselves either "putting out fires" or finding new stuff to worry about 90% of the time, while actually accomplishing "real" stuff 10% of the time.

Most people don't realize this, but workshifting isn't new, it's just much more easy than it used to be. Winston Churchill is the greatest workshifter of all time. Apart from being arguably the most influential statesman in the 20th Century, the guy is like the Godfather of all workshifting. During the period of the Second World War, Churchill traveled well over 100,000 miles to meet with national leaders and visit Allied Troops! But let's remember that Churchill wasn't a General, he was the Prime Minister of the British Empire. He was the first one to call Hitler out, was instrumental in crafting most of Britain's war time strategy, personally recruited most Allied nations (oh by the way, including the US), signed dozens of treaties, gave literally hundreds of public addresses, weathered two heart attacks, almost fatal pneumonia, and ran the most expansive empire in modern history AND he managed to do all of this while working in underground bunkers while in London as it was being decimated by Nazi V1's and while traveling 4x the circumference of the earth!

What is even more remarkable is the stark contrast between Churchill, FDR, and Stalin. FDR worked from the White House, leaving only a handful of times during the War and Stalin literally got on one plane during the same period!

Churchill was said to have accomplished all this and work until the age of 90 by maintaining a rigorous routine. Recently, I visited the the Churchill Centre and Cabinet War Rooms in London. I was trying to figure out how in the hell he was able to accomplish everything he did while traveling so damn much. And there it was. In the "Grey Section" of the museum, there was actually a little case devoted to his legendary schedule, which he maintained irrespective of what was happening around him or where he was in the world.

It made me realize how much work I have to do in this arena, and since I've returned to NYC, I have started taking my Google Calendar much more seriously :)

Have you developed a routine that helps you maintain productivity?

What are some tips or tricks you can share with us?

Super Secret Workshifting Tip:

Later in his life, when Churchill was asked by Walter Graebner from Time-Life how he was able to work so many hours and maintain such a rigorous schedule, he was quoted as saying:

"You must sleep some time between lunch and dinner, and no half-way measures. Take off your clothes and get into bed. That's what I always do. Don't think you will be doing less work because you sleep during the day. That's a foolish notion held by people who have no imagination. You will be able to accomplish more. You get two days in one-well, at least one and a half, I'm sure. When the war started, I had to sleep during the day because that was the only way I could cope with my responsibilities. Later, when I became Prime Minister my burdens were, of course, even greater. Often I was obliged to work far into the night I had to see reports, take decisions and issue instructions that could not wait until the next day. And at night I'd also dictate minutes requesting information which my staff could assemble for me in the morning--and place before me when I woke up."

Churchill continued: "But a man should sleep during the day for another reason. Sleep enables you to be at your best in the evening when you join your wife, family and friends for dinner. That is the time to be at your best--a good dinner, with good wines...champagne is very good...then some brandy--that is the great moment of the day. Man is ruler then--perhaps only for fifteen minutes, but for that time at least he is master--and the ladies must not leave the table too soon."

Photo by: melissaleon

Finding and Hiring New Staff

AJ Leon — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 23:00:30 +0000

There comes a time in every workshifter's life when the idea of hiring staff evolves from a fairy tale to a necessity. For the solopreneur breed of workshifter, this issue precipitates two contradictory realities. On the one hand, you cannot afford to hire a high paying salaried position. But on the other hand, you cannot afford to hire some schmuck at 5 bucks an hour either. In other words, hiring a low wage laborer typically constitutes someone who is going to engender a "clock in, clock out" mentality which obviously isn't congruent in a workshifting paradigm.

In Greek mythology, Procrustes was the badass spawn of Poseidon. Procrustes had a lock on the only pathway through Mount Korydallos to Athens. As travelers would roll through on their merry little way to Athens, he would invite the weary adventurers to stay in his guest room. In a bizarre turn of events, he would ask them to lie in his bed. It appears as if Procrustes was both a psychopath and an incredibly anal dude. Because if their legs were too long and swung off the bottom of the bed, well, he would just chop them off. And if the traveler's head hung off the top of the bed, he would lop that sucker off as well.

I know what you are thinking, and no, I am not suggesting you invite potential staff candidates to an interview, and if they don't fit your criteria, to subsequently amputate their body parts.
What I am saying is this. As workshifters trying to grow our team, we are in a Procrustean Bed. It doesn't all fit. We need good...no, great people working with us in order to achieve our hopes and objectives, but at the same time we are most likely cash strapped and cannot afford a "quality" hire.

So, what do we do?

For the most part, we have two options to procure new team members. We can either find people (typically friends or associates) that possess at least a drop of the entrepreneurial penchant, and develop a non or low salaried partnership with them in exchange for equity in our company. Or we seek to hire potential staff abroad in economies in which we can afford to pay good salaries leveraging communities such as oDesk or Guru. I'm sure there are many derivative possibilities from these two choices, but the point is that in order to crawl out of our uncomfortable Procrustean Bed we have to get creative about how we find new team members or staff.

Over the past year, my company has grown from me all by my lonely workshifting self, to adding three additional staff. After trying everything to bring on new people and screwing up more times than I can remember, I saw an interview with my buddy Ryan Carson, Founder of Carsonified, where he was asked "What do you look for when you're hiring staff?" His answer completely realigned my perspective in hiring new staff.

Whether you go local, create a partnership, or outsource to find your new staff, these three qualities are absolutely essential to the architecture of an indelible employee.

They must be...

Curious

A curious person will not only do what is asked of them, but will have an internal desire to learn the what, how, and why of everything they do...and probably what everyone else does too!

Helpful

A helpful person doesn't just settle with what they are asked to do, they actively seek to help and empower everyone around them to be better at their jobs.

Proactive

A proactive person doesn't just check tasks off a list, they anticipate and create solutions before problems even occur.

In your experience, what are the qualities that make or have made for outstanding staff?

Do you have any examples?

Photo by: The Eggplant

3 Tips to Center Your Workshifting Ch’i

AJ Leon — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:37:55 +0000

It's a little windy. I can hear the crunch of leaves under my feet. Answering an important email from my favorite client. Spotted pigeons pecking at the remains of my emphatically mediocre blueberry scone. Preparing for a Skype call with one of my staff in three minutes. Feels like it might rain later today. Carefully putting the finishing touches on the third revision of a proposal. Crazy ass dog looking at my netbook in an unsavory fashion. I am on a wooden park bench. I am also in my office.

We are workshifters. We work in coffee shops, airports, restaurants, hotel rooms, airplanes, parks, lobbies, internet cafes, trains, long car rides and wherever else we find the acute desire to crack open our laptops.

Those that have office-saturated lives have no idea how we are able to remain productive and maintain our work Ch'i in the midst of our very un-office like workspaces.

In my video below, I talk about three essentials that help me stay in the groove while workshifting whether it's at my indigenous coffee shops in the East Village or on the steps of the National Gallery in London.

What are some thing YOU do to keep your workshifting Ch'i intact?

Photo by: Roberto Marquino

Coloring Outside the Lines: a Workshifting Soliloquy

AJ Leon — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 13:08:14 +0000

I was in the London underground yesterday returning from a wonderful planning meeting at Trafalgar Square. I love the London underground because it has clean, cushy seats that face each other. In New York City, we have hard fiberglass seats, maybe that's what Frank Sanatra was talking about...Anyways, so I'm in the "tube" as they call it here. And across from me, there's this kid with his dad. Generally, I like kids, but it's not like I'm one of those aberrant gawkers that are so enamored by the site of these little people that keep waving and smiling until the kid gets most understandably creeped out and starts crying.

But this kid. There was something about this kid that resonated with me. He started getting rowdy in the tube, which in NYC is one thing, but in London, which is a bit more reserved, such an "episode" would be that much more conspicuous. Before the kid precipitated into an unmitigated "baby freak out", his dad, perspicacious sage that he is, ripped open his backpack, dove in, and within half a second retrieved the one instrument that could delay the bewailing that seemed so imminent...the coloring book. The day is won! Indeed, that was enough to stave off a spectacle in that subway car. The kid gets to it. Like Jordan in Madison Square, you can tell this kid just owns it. This coloring book is his domain. He is happy. He is exploding with creativity. Probably the reason why his dad didn't grab the Thomas the Train action figure (which would've been my choice).

So the kid is in his element. He quickly flashes some of his art for the whole train to see. The decrepit old dude sitting to his left, wearing a hideous mauve stitched jacket, did not seem to acknowledge his genius. But I was a bit taken. I knew there was something about this kid. Nothing, not one page, was colored in the lines. It's as if each of these pages was a blank canvas to the boy. He didn't see laughing ducks. And smiling bears. And stupid kids playing hop scotch. He unapologetically let his Excalibur-like blue crayon take him where his imagination, his creativity deemed most worthy, without regard to the presupposed, pre-populated enclaves of some dictatorial Coloring book Publisher.

That wasn't it, though. The most indelible moment was yet to come. Then his dad looked down at his book. Realizing what a "mess" he was making, and maybe thinking that his kids' motor skills needed significant polishing, dad puts kid on his lap. He then gently places his hand over his son's hand and starts guiding his crayon over the shell of a grinning turtle. Within two seconds of this Kodak moment, the kid cocks his hand back and punches his dad right in the nose...Twice!!! As if to say, "Hey dumbass, you think I don't see that freaking turtle with his grin!?! I'm doing it my own damn way because I am more creative then some coloring book Editor that probably gave up his art a long time ago in exchange for a paycheck, a free pot of coffee every morning, and a cubicle!!!"

There was no way in hell that anyone was going to tell this kid that in order to be "successful" he needed to color in the lines.

I've been doing a ton of thinking lately about why it is that we workshift. Whether you work for yourself or an employer, of course, there are the pragmatic benefits. The savings in overhead, the time freedom, the opportunity cost of the commute. Maybe for you, these and other practical considerations are the only reasons and that's fine. But I can't help but think there is a modicum of poetry in the liberty we have acquired. A sense of pride swelling when we can join a community like Workshifting. When we can say that we have usurped the circumscript confines of the Corporate World.

Many people don't realize this, but when Michelangelo was chosen to paint the Sistine Chapel, he had never actually painted a fresco before. He was a sculptor not a painter. Against his will, he was commissioned by Pope Julius II to paint the ceiling of the chapel. Pope Julius II was called the "warrior pope" and he was as nefarious and autocratic as they come. The arguments between him and Michelangelo are legendary. It's said that from time to time, the pope would come to inspect Michelangelo's work, which Michelangelo abhorred, which is why he kept them covered. One day, the pope became so irate that Michelangelo wouldn't follow his instruction or submit to his vision, that he cracked Michelangelo across the face with his scepter, shattering his jaw, and forever disfiguring him. The pope had a definitive concept of what he wanted on that ceiling, and in spite of being the most feared man in the Western world, not one of his original, incredibly conventional ideas were included. As Michelangelo put it, he would "do as (he) liked".

No one was going to tell Michelangelo that in order to create a masterpiece he had to color in the lines.

Why do we workshift?

Because we are infinitely creative. passionate. inspired. unique. And there is no way in hell that we will be relegated to a demarcated Sea of Cubicles for the rest of our lives.

Because no C-level magistrate is going tell us that in order to be heard, to succeed, to create masterpieces we have to adhere to the axioms of an archaic, life draining work environment.

Because no Six Sigma debutante is going to tell us that we need to acquiesce to Corporate platitudes just because everyone else is willing to absorb them.

Because nobody is going to tell us that we have to color in the lines.

So, that leads me to wonder...why do you workshift?

Photo by: Melissa Leon

Tips for International Workshifting

AJ Leon — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 04:33:31 +0000

I absolutely love traveling. Trying new foods. Experiencing different cultures. Meeting new people. Trying new foods...wait, did I already say that?

Traveling for pleasure is easy, especially for the adventurous type, just make some basic plans, do a bit of research and on you go. Traveling for business...not so much. Add to this, international travel, particularly multi-country trips and there are a litany of considerations and variables that one must consider.

Take the business trip that I have been on for the past three weeks. Now don't get me wrong, I am a planner, meticulous and methodical, of OCD-esque proportions, but this trip got me good. When working abroad, there are so many additional items to consider. Take charging your laptop for instance. Back home in the East Village (NYC) coffee shops I frequent for my workshifting needs, charging my laptop is a regular occurrence. The freedom to "plug in" where ever I damn well please (one that I now feel should be embedded into the Bill of Rights) has become a fundamental element of my workshifting life. In fact without that "freedom", I wouldn't be able to carry on as a workshifter for longer than a couple hours at a time. However, in certain countries in Europe I have found the "Plug in for All" freedom has yet to evolve into the consciousness of coffee shop owners.

Charging laptops is just one example of the woes of the international workshifter, there are also electrical converters to consider, Internet access, tethering ability, data access on mobiles. As you might imagine, I have now meandered into the land of business travel expert by forgetting to consider pretty much all of these variables.

So, in the spirit of community sharing, I thought I might post a video to help any other workshifter planning an international trip so that you might learn from my many, many mistakes.

What other tips do you have for workshifting internationally? How do you prepare for traveling internationally for work?

Staying Fit While Workshifting on the Road

AJ Leon — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 15:10:59 +0000

Working while on the road is complicated. Acclimating yourself to new cities or cultures. Getting to meetings. Finding internet access that won't require you fork over the deed to your house.

While planning the company trip I'm on right now a major consideration was how I could stay fit while on the road. Two years ago, I weighed in at about 250 pounds, and I was incredibly unhealthy. Once I fled the corporate world like the Phoenix from the ashes, I decided, now that I was on my own, I was going to get and stay fit. Traveling on business while trying to stay fit can be a nightmare. There are two issues.

Number one is the eating. For some reason, we all turn into gluttonous porkers while we are away from home. The Peanut M&M's that we would never buy while at home, mysteriously find their way into every solitary meal. I thought I'd stay away from this one for the purposes of this post as I still haven't succeeded in staving off my gormandizing tendencies. But, number two is fitness. Sometimes the places you stay don't have a gym, or sometimes you just don't want to drag your tail down there to be ambushed by someone that might be there for the same conference/meeting, etc.

Here I provide a short video of what I bring to stay fit while workshifting on the road. This stuff is cheap, easy to pack, and can be used anywhere.

For those interested in the push-ups bars and/or resistance bads, here are a bunch of options over on Amazon: Push-up Bars & Resistance Bands.

So, before your next business trip, go out and buy this gear, and commit to 20 minutes a day (or like me, every other day) and you should be able to stay fit in the midst of your workshifting madness.

Do you have any tips on how you stay fit while traveling?

Run Your Own Business? There’s a SaaS for that

AJ Leon — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:51:05 +0000

Let's say you start a business from scratch.

You get on the phone. Put on your Sunday's best. Get some meetings. Acquire a couple great Clients. Bring in some green. Everything is peachy.

Then after a bit....

Money starts rollin in and out before you even get the chance to caress it.

Clients start emailing you random ideas.

You have no idea where the latest copy of your proposal is.

You start forgetting about meetings until an hour before.

Clients email you more random ideas.

Your ziplock bag of receipts has evolved into a Uhaul Box.

Your inbox becomes the bane of your existence.

This apocalyptic nightmare can and should be avoided. When you decide to start your own business, there is an implied level of due diligence that is required. You have to research the most prudent incorporation method, file any trademarks necessary, get a bank account (or buy a jar at Target to put under your desk like I do), and make the epic decision between mechanical pencils or the "real" kind.

However, with the advent of affordable online business applications, there are now a litany of new considerations.

Which brings us to the SaaS. A SaaS is an acronym for "Software as a Service". A SaaS is a software developed for a specific purpose, usually business related. They are typically exclusively online, incredibly easy to use, and affordable for even the newbie entrepreneur.

A SaaS application is a form of cloud computing, using technology solutions that are online as opposed to device/hardware dependent. There are SaaS's available for every conceivable business process, and at our company we use quite a few. Taking the time to research and test SaaS applications that could help you run your business more effectively and efficiently should be within the first things you do to organize your venture.

Here are a couple of SaaS applications that I feel can be useful to every entrepreneur at any level no matter what type of business. These apps have completely evolved the way I do business. They have made our company more efficient, collaborative, and flexible...like the Delorian at the beginning of Back to the Future Part I, which I think we can unanimously agree is a good thing not matter what you are trying to accomplish.

Less Accounting

Process

Bookkeeping

Price

Free to $24 per Month

Some Cool Features

You can create and send Invoices & Proposals

Handy dandy Mileage Log to record mileage deduction

Perform super easy Bank Reconciliations

Multiple types of Sales Tax

Set up Bank Accounts and import all of your transactions, yes, it's less accounting

One reason they kick SaaS

If Quickbooks and LessAccounting were in a fight, I'm pretty sure Less could pull an old school "Head Lock n' Swirlee" move.

Less Accounting is by far the most comprehensive, intuitive, and sleek accounting SaaS on the market. They certainly have competitors, some that get much more press, basically because the others are VC backed. But Allan Branch and Steve Bristol (CoFounders of Less Everything) have decided to build their flagship app the old fashioned way, one happy user at a time!

In a former life I was a was a nerdy, green visor and pocket protector wearing bean counter...yes, friends, I was an indeed an Accountant. I have degrees in both accounting and finance, I worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers and as a Financial Controller for a few years, so it is with a modicum of authority that I can deem Less Accounting the best accounting SaaS on the face of the planet.

Box

Process

File Sharing & Collaborative Working

Price

Free to $15 per User per Month

Some Cool Features

Store ALL your files online

Create Online Workspaces

Mobile Access to Files

File Commenting, Group Discussions & Online Documents

Within Box edit files online in Zoho, ConceptShare, or Picnik

Create tasks associated with files (ie "to review")

Access files from anywhere in the World with Internet connection

One reason they kick SaaS

They have launched a scrappy campaign to usurp the Goliath Microsoft's file sharing service.

No more fuddling around with flash drives or frantically excavating your Inbox to find the most current version of a document, presentation or spreadsheet. Box makes it possible for a company of any size to store, share and collaborate online with anyone that has internet access. I am definitely a power Box user, storing close to 1,000 files online.

To give you an idea how powerful Box is, we have two full time employees abroad, are currently working with developers and designers in three continents. We have three active client projects. We are within a month of launching our own application. We are leading a campaign to build a school in South Sudan, and we will be leaving to Europe for the next 4 weeks. Not to mention we are a tiny, amorphous little company.

Box affords us with the ability to seamlessly collaborate with our team no matter where we are in the World. By committing to Box you can make your business truly agile, which in the evolving landscape of our tenuous economic era, I consider an invaluable asset.

Okay, so those are two of my "to die for" SaaS apps for WorkShifters. What SaaS's have you found that are useful to your life as a WorkShifter? Are there any online business apps that you would not recommend? Why?

3 Tips to Keeping Your Sanity as a Workshifter

AJ Leon — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 20:07:19 +0000

You have the ideal work life.

You hopped into your proverbial Argus and escaped from a ubiquitous Sea of Cubicles.

You work remotely for your employer or you run your own business.

You have the liberty to work when and where and in the manner you please.

You are free.

A few months down the road, bankrupt of the daily water cooler banter, you start talking to yourself in your home office, which evolves into full blown conversations with imaginary associates, which tumults into your recruitment into covert CIA assignments, and if you've watched A Beautiful Mind, you know how this story ends.

Whether you are working remotely for your employer, as a solopreneur, or running a small amorphous company, the prospect of working "alone" for a significant portion of the day, every day, can be daunting at times. Having escaped the confines of a cubicle-ridden life about 18 months ago, and having my fair share of meetings with imaginary staff members, here are my 3 tips to stave off insanity as a power workshifter.

Work around people.

a couple times a week (at least)

Just because you are technically "on your own" now doesn't mean that you need to ostracize yourself from society in an underground bunker (aka your home office). Meeting new people and engaging in small talk about current events, politics, culture, or what the hell the producers of "Lost" are smoking serves as a rejuvenating break during the workday. The obsequious office chat that helped make days livable in your former life now serve a different purpose.

If you work from home, find a cozy, little coffee shop near your house to work from twice a week. If you travel a ton, work in the hotel bar or lobby area every now and then. Although at times distracting, just working around people, engaging in the occasional casual chit chat, keeps you from engulfing too far into the deep end of work. I have some great conversations, meet several fellow workshifters, and have developed a couple business relationships simply by choosing to spend the majority of my workday in public places.

Find an inspirational spot.

once a week

Remember when you were a kid, when you were in your treehouse or at the beach or at the park, those were the times when you were most creative. You would figure out new uses for your toys. You would make up new games. You would figure out how to cross the monkey bars using only one arm. Nothing changes as we get older. The toys are different, the games are a bit more complex, the monkey bar maneuvers have ROI considerations. But our creativity is still predicated on our moments of inspiration.

Find an inspirational place to work from just once a week. Maybe just for a few hours. It may seem weird and it's definitely unconventional, but there is something about being surrounded by inspiration that empowers your mind to go places it just can't go hunched in a corner looking at your wall all day.

Embrace the Twitterverse.

every day

Presumably many people reading this are probably already on Twitter. However, if you have not quite taken the sojourn to the Twitterverse, then allow me to be the first to formally invite you. No matter what type of work you do, no matter where you are in the world, no matter how tech savvy you are or are not, you will find a community of Twitter peeps that are helpful and that want to engage with people like you.

With all this talk about people leveraging Twitter as a marketing tool, it sometimes gets lost, that at it's core, Twitter is a community of real people, not just company logos and celebrities. There are weirdos everywhere, but in my three years on Twitter, I have found that by and large, the Twitter community is represented by kind and caring individuals that are simply seeking and willing to engage and share with others.

To start finding people that are into what you're into, you probably need to download a Twitter client (I use TweetDeck), and search terms or ideas or people or industries that you find interesting. Then just start hopping into conversations and introducing yourself. It might feel strange at first, but it's no different than being at a networking event, except they don't make you play stupid ice breaker games.

I am by no means a Twitter celebrity, I only have a couple hundred followers. I'm just a regular dude that has embraced this very unique tool to connect with people of like mind across the world. But I personally have met several clients, developed quite a few real friendships, and have a repository of fresh, relevant information shared with me daily, exclusively on Twitter.

So, remember these three things as you continue to hone what your life as a professional WorkShifter will look like:

people good. inspiration good. twitter good.

What tips do you follow to stay sane as a workshifter?

Photos by: ajleon & respres