For the past two weeks, I’ve been forced to work in environments that I’m not really used to, and for good reason. I had to make a pretty important trip, not too long ago, and in this place, I don’t have access to a number of the facilities that I’m used to, and as a result, it’s been hampering my work. In a way, I guess I’ve spoiled myself to the point where the work systems I’m used to have become the bare minimum for me to function.
I know how this sounds, but it also clarifies why I’m being like this. And if I’m being honest, I don’t think I want it to change. It’s very uncomfortable, but it’s also forcing me to think outside the box and find d ways to force the situation to become comfortable. Which, in my opinion, is a good thing.
So, what’s my problem? I’ve always been a sucker for my comfort. When I work, I try my best to make my environment as conducive as possible. As a remote worker, no matter how much it costs me, I put a lot of effort and money into getting a comfortable workspace. This is why I build desks, I also get an ergonomic chair that spins and moves around, it makes mobility easy without having to get up. I also have an external monitor to make the work easier. Especially when I have to study two things without the stress of constantly minimizing or splitting the already small screen of my laptop.
So, a lot goes into my workspace, and it becomes my sacred place because that’s where all my work gets done. More than 90% of the work I do is on my laptop, and I do it at my desk. Once I leave the desk, then you know that I’m done with work for that moment. That was the system, and I’ve been at it for years now. And at this point, I can’t help but think that maybe I have gotten too comfortable in this.
You see, on this trip I took, I’m with my laptop because I’ll have to keep working. But I don’t have access to a desk, chair, or even an external monitor. For the first time in a long time, I’m simply with just my laptop, and I’m supposed to do the work on a bed. And boy, it’s destabilizing. I can’t work on the bed, I find it really uncomfortable. When I sit with my back against the wall, my neck will hurt. When I lie on my stomach, my back and shoulders will hurt. When I sit on the edge of the bed with the laptop on my lap, my neck will resume hurting.
It’s as if every single move I make hurts like hell. At a point, I got fed up and decided to do the work on my phone, but for some reason, it was worse. I couldn’t even type a post on my phone. Every position I tried to use to get comfortable enough will always end in me getting tired and losing my train of thought. When I tried to force it, I started feeling nauseous. The same way I get sick when I try to read in a moving car or plane.
Now, this is the funny thing here: I started my blogging journey with a phone. My ghostwriting career also started with my phone as well. I wrote 9k words for my very first client, on my phone! But since I got my first laptop, things changed, and now, I can’t even make a 500-word post anymore on my phone without feeling like I want to throw up.
So, what is all this? I guess this is part of growth. I’ve always loved my system because working from home can be very deceptive; you can spend the entire day in bed without doing a single thing, and if you’re not careful, you can do those things in bed. Having a dedicated area for my work always meant that no matter what, I had to get up and out of bed to do the work there. It instilled a form of discipline in me, and I’m still grateful to this day.
Do I want to get used to this? I say no! This is not a situation I want to get used to. I’m not staying here for long, but if this continues, I’ll be forced to buy a plastic table and chair just so I can put my laptop on and do my job better. I don’t want to get used to working with my phone or working in bed. That will be where the downward trends will begin.
So yeah, it’s been a crazy couple of weeks. I should be back home after Easter, and things will have returned to normal by then. But until that happy moment, I’ll keep trying to make posts. This post was now made on my phone; I can see it’s 800+ words, which is actually a flex. By the time I’m done, I’ll rest for nothing less than five hours. Lol!
Well, let’s see how it goes.
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