Natalie Burg's Blog, page 12
October 3, 2013
Am I Working Hard Enough? The perpetual paranoia of the freelancer
The traditional American workplace has developed around making sure employees work hard enough, but not too hard. Labor laws give workers hourly limits; bosses provide accountability. For the typical employee, knowing if you're working hard enough is as straightforward as waiting for a reprimand or the urge to sue your employer.
In the comparatively anarchic world of freelancing, insecurity over whether or not one is working hard enough causes many freelancers to work themselves into insanity. Maybe it's the whole bit about only making as much money as you earn. Maybe it's the tinge of guilt we feel from getting to work at home in our yoga pants. Whatever it is, I've noticed far more overworking than underworking from my peeps in the freelancing business.
I got caught up in overworking myself in my first years of freelancing, only stopping when when I would suddenly feel like my soul was bleeding. That's not a fun way to live. But ever since conscientiously pulling back, I've walked around with this little guilt devil on my shoulder that constantly whispers in my ear, "Are you working hard enough? Shouldn't you be working more? Couldn't you be?"
That's a surefire way to ruin a good mid-day dog walk or cancel your plans to go to the gym. Because I'm determined to make freelancing a sustainable career, it's crucial that I'm able to make a living and avoid working my way through the things that make life fulfilling. What I've found is that while labor laws and looming bosses can't be the productivity guardrails for freelancing, a series of indicators help keep me in balance. These are a few.
In the comparatively anarchic world of freelancing, insecurity over whether or not one is working hard enough causes many freelancers to work themselves into insanity. Maybe it's the whole bit about only making as much money as you earn. Maybe it's the tinge of guilt we feel from getting to work at home in our yoga pants. Whatever it is, I've noticed far more overworking than underworking from my peeps in the freelancing business.
I got caught up in overworking myself in my first years of freelancing, only stopping when when I would suddenly feel like my soul was bleeding. That's not a fun way to live. But ever since conscientiously pulling back, I've walked around with this little guilt devil on my shoulder that constantly whispers in my ear, "Are you working hard enough? Shouldn't you be working more? Couldn't you be?"
That's a surefire way to ruin a good mid-day dog walk or cancel your plans to go to the gym. Because I'm determined to make freelancing a sustainable career, it's crucial that I'm able to make a living and avoid working my way through the things that make life fulfilling. What I've found is that while labor laws and looming bosses can't be the productivity guardrails for freelancing, a series of indicators help keep me in balance. These are a few.
October 2, 2013
Swedish Lessons on Michigan Radio!
Today, two of my lifelong dreams were realized. First, I was interviewed on NPR about my new book. Second, in that interview, they had to beep out a swear word. It wasn't even my fault! Cynthia Canty, the host of my very favorite Michigan Radio show, Stateside, handed me my book, mid-interview, with a highlighted section for me to read. It had the word "shit" in it. So I read it. And it made me so happy.
October 1, 2013
Possibly premature lessons from a government shutdown. That just started.
The government has been shut down for almost 20 hours now, so why not start thinking about what we're going to be saying to ourselves after it's over? I mean, nothing any of us peons out here in the American public can do a thing to resolve this mess, so we might as well start considering what we can do, which is use our power as "the people" (as known from such oldies but goodies as "of the people" and "by the people") to avoid this type of disaster in the future.
Here are my ideas:
Here are my ideas:
September 30, 2013
The Fall of Roam
Surely I'm not the only one contemplating the fall of Rome today. But in an effort to avoid the hyperbolic fray of the government shutdown, I purposefully shifted my thinking from large-scale crises to small. Though I doubt the Washington drama will result in the end of civilization as we know it (fingers crossed! Survivorship skills aren't top on on my household's list of talents.), the end of a personal era is definitely upon me. And it's making me a little itchy. 
September 26, 2013
On Women & Strength: Saving our tea for the really hot water
I answered a question incorrectly. Actually, it's happened twice now. I've been interviewed on two different radio stations about my book, Swedish Lessons, and in both instances I was asked the same question: "Why didn't you just leave?"
It's a question I anticipated, as the full answer is the theme of the entire book. In the moment, during these interviews, however, I tiptoed around the weight of the question, instead listing some of the practical and logistical reasons that why, when things started really going off the rails during my time living in Sweden, I stuck it out, even as the situation got worse and worse. Those things are true, but they shouldn't have been my answer.
It's a question I anticipated, as the full answer is the theme of the entire book. In the moment, during these interviews, however, I tiptoed around the weight of the question, instead listing some of the practical and logistical reasons that why, when things started really going off the rails during my time living in Sweden, I stuck it out, even as the situation got worse and worse. Those things are true, but they shouldn't have been my answer.
Dusting, Dog Tricks and Dental Hygienists: Knowing what matters, and ditching the rest
There are somethings I do, even though I don't really see the point of doing them. LinkedIn. Eating Asian food with chopsticks. Teaching every dog I've had to give me high five. They don't benefit me in any way, but they seem like something people do, they don't take too much effort, so I do them.
September 24, 2013
On hating hills and writing better
So there's this hill, right before I get to my gym, that is a total nightmare to ride up on my bike. I strain and groan and stand up on my pedels and almost fall over, and by the time I get to the top, my heart is thumping wildly and I can hardly breathe. Sometimes I just get off my bike and walk it. Every time, I get mad at the hill for even existing. Stupid hill.
September 23, 2013
Indie authors, marketing and the art of trying whatever
When you're in a centuries-old trade that has been completely turned on its head, there are no rules by which to be guided, nor to be bound. People have been writing and selling books for a super long time, but the indie author/POD/online marketing approach is brand spanking new. It's an interesting challenge, because some of the tools you need have been around forever, but are entrenched in the old way of doing things, and others are simply so new, there's just no way of knowing what the best ones are. 
September 20, 2013
Finding your thing
If you pay even the slightest bit of attention to myself or my husband online, you know we have a large, silly dog named Lois. We love Lois, who will be two years old one week from today, but Lois is...special. And being special sometimes makes Lois' life a challenge. 
September 19, 2013
Advice for Not Myself: Never give advice. Tell stories.
For whatever reason, I recently started thinking about what advice I would give to myself a decade ago if given the chance. Then I realized that was a stupid waste of time. First, because it's a cliched exercise that only breeds cliched nuggets of meme-abley meaningless wisdom. Second, because I absolutely cannot, ever, give 21-year-old Natalie advice. She doesn't exist. Finally, once you've written a book about a series your worst young adult decisions, you've pretty much exorcised those demons anyway.
