Having just returned from a 10 day holiday I have decided to re-evaluate the time I spend sitting and working at the computer and how much time I should devote to more leisurely pursuits. After all, one of the reasons I decided to make a living from the internet was to try and build more streams of passive income, rather than trading time for money as in most jobs.
I really enjoyed my recent holiday and once again it dawned on me that I am spending way too much of my time working instead of enjoying other pursuits and interests that I have. And I would really love to have more than just one holiday each year.
Your leisure time is so important to re-charge your batteries, but at the same time, when you take a holiday which allows you to travel to various places (I like going on cruises) it gives you a different perspective on life. For example, I spend most of my time working in my home office and hardly ever see a soul, which is completely the opposite from my previous business as a driving instructor.
Travelling to different places, meeting new people can be stimulating and educational. So one of my goals now is to travel more. I like the work I do now (it's less stressful and has greater earning potential than my previous job) but working in isolation can be lonely at times.
Actually, I have just done a quick search on Google on the effects of 'working in isolation' and found an interesting article which describes some of the adverse effects of working on your own ..
"a University of Chicago social psychologist who studies the biological effects of loneliness, presented some of his latest research at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology meeting in San Diego in January. He has found, for instance, loneliness is tied to hardening of the arteries (which leads to high blood pressure), inflammation in the body, and even problems with learning and memory. Even fruit flies that are isolated have worse health and die sooner than those that interact with others, showing that social engagement may be hard-wired..."
I haven't felt any adverse effects of working on my own but that doesn't mean that I'm not susceptible to these potential problems.
If you're in a similar situation as me, working from home, and especially if you rarely see people during your working day, it may be well worth re-evaluating your own time, and how you should address the balance between working and having free time to enjoy other pursuits in your life.
* Taken from article http://www.livescience.com/18800-loneliness-health-problems.html
