As I write this, I’m surrounded by the lush greenery of a Costa Rican rainforest. I savour a cup of locally sourced coffee as the rain beats a heavy drum on the tin roof of the cafe where I work. The chorus of birds adds to the ambience, creating an almost surreal experience. I feel refreshed and renewed thanks to the volcanic hot spring I enjoyed earlier today. My journey here was an adventure in itself — navigating Costa Rican dirt roads, humorously obstructed by cows and countless potholes, more resembling a rollercoaster than a road. After finishing this piece, I plan to head out to a hotel overlooking the stunning Arenal Lake and Volcano. This might sound like an incredible vacation to many, but in fact, it’s my everyday life. Since leaving Oilers Entertainment Group 18 months ago, the entirety of 2023 has blended the lines between vacation and vocation. My work travels with me, always accompanied by my trusty laptops and portable monitors. When I hosted a late-night Saturday meeting and someone made a comment about it, it hit me: my relationship with time had fundamentally changed. And I felt compelled to share this new perspective with the world.
The traditional view of time as a commodity has been ingrained in our society for ages. Who controls your time during work hours? Traditionally, it’s the employer. The internet era began to reshape this notion, hinting at the potential of remote work. Yet, for most, this remained unrealistic due to systems and processes that still required physical presence at work. Additionally, internet infrastructure was unreliable in many parts of the world. Workplaces clung to their central, physical hubs, and employees were compensated for their time, not necessarily their output. The COVID-19 pandemic then catalyzed a seismic shift in remote work, challenging the essence of traditional office culture. Starlink revolutionized where and how we could connect to the internet. Renowned publications speculated about the end of the office era and tech giants led the way with their permanently remote environments.
Then, in the aftermath of the pandemic, the pendulum began to swing back to pre-COVID realities. Companies called their employees back to offices or implemented hybrid approaches, preventing even hybrid workers from getting too far away from home base. And still, the dominant model pays employees for time, not efficiency or output, leaving little incentive for employees to improve productivity.
My ‘office’ is wherever I am — be it a café in Costa Rica, an airport lounge in Panama, or a coworking space in Colombia. Working on holidays like Christmas is not a sign of overwork, but a testament to my commitment to efficiency and value creation. I have developed such a healthy relationship with work that I no longer view a Saturday night meeting as “crazy”, because I simultaneously might spend my entire Tuesday skiing with no work in sight. My entire relationship with the conventional standards of time stands in stark contrast to the typical white-collar corporate world that had been ingrained in me. Over the past 18 months, I’ve honed my focus on impactful ‘value creation’ tasks, doing everything in my power to get rid of the mundane. This shift has not only allowed me to reap the rewards of my efforts but also to innovate more effective and efficient processes.
Of course, it’s not all perfect. There are weeks where work consumes my time, demanding 12- to 14-hour days, seven (or should I say eight?) days a week. But there are also weeks where I have the freedom to adventure, relax, or spend my time as I please.
I unequivocally reject the corporate notion that ‘time equals productivity.’ It’s a narrative that doesn’t resonate with me. As a small business owner, my focus is squarely on the value I create, not the hours I put in. This philosophy isn’t limited to my business; it applies across all professions where success should be measured by the value delivered. I use labels like small business owner, digital nomad, and entrepreneur to provide context, not because I am particularly fond of the labels.
To those who think my lifestyle requires immense wealth, I assure you my student loans are likely more than yours. To those who suspect I’m living beyond my means, I’ve increased my net worth more in this past year than in the previous five working for someone else. And to those who believe traveling the world is costly, my current expenses are probably lower than your everyday costs in Canada, the U.S., the UK, or Germany.
I know this next line sounds dramatic, but I genuinely believe it to be true. We are standing at the dawn of a significant shift in the modern workplace, driven by automation, artificial intelligence, improved internet connectivity, and more. For the modern office worker, there’s a real opportunity to make adventure a central part of your life. Your parents or other loved ones might think you’re crazy if you go down this path. That’s because it wasn’t a realistic one until very recently. But it’s here now, and if you’re wired like me, I highly encourage you to consider taking it.
If this vision of life excites you, I invite you to subscribe to Eight Days A Week, an exceptional blog for young professionals curated by a remarkable young professional Sara Campbell. Join me as I continue to share insights and learnings from my journey. If my experiences can inspire or help even one person, I’ll consider it a success.
If this vision of life excites you, I am excited too. I plan to continue to write more so I can share insights and learnings from my journey. If my experiences can inspire or help even one person, I’ll consider it a success.
