Several years ago Sean and I both read a book by Timothy Ferriss called the Four Hour Work Week. This was well before we even had a thought of moving out of state. But it did begin to stir within us that there must be another way to live and work. The author challenges the common way of life; obtain a college degree, get a job, work 40-60 hours a week till you’re sixty five then retire when you’re too old to enjoy it.

I have known too many people that waited until they were retired to start living and then got sick and died or had other problems that kept them from enjoying those years. We have decided that won’t be us.

I came home from a shoot the other day and saw Sean sleeping on the deck in his hammock. I just had to snap a picture. He did not know I took it until now when he reads this post. (Sorry, Babe 😉 ) But it immediately reminded me of Tim’s book. And made me think, wow, we really are doing this!

Now don’t hear me wrong, I am not afraid of working, I know how to get work done, we just decided to find another way to do it.

First of all, I think it is important to find out what you are good at and make sure that you enjoy doing it. It doesn’t always have to be passion driven, but please don’t get stuck in a job you dread.

Years ago when I started my business, we had a big house, several cars, lots of cameras, props,  equipment, and eventually a 3,000 square foot studio. We had a lot of  stuff to maintain and take care of. Not to mention four digit utility bills every month. It seemed like our stuff constantly needed fixed, replaced or upgraded. We worked long hours usually late into the night and starting early in the morning to make enough money to maintain taking care of all this stuff and still grow our business. After several years our business was growing and expanding, then within just a few months the economy turned and we found ourselves quickly struggling. This lead to a lot of stress in our lives. Grasping to hang on.

The business we had built, was based on our own creativity and we loved what we did. Although it was a difficult task to be creative under pressure and financial stress.

We gathered our thoughts and made a new commitment to each other. Then we decided, we built it once, we can do it again, but this time in a way that won’t take as much to sustain. Next was the huge purge. Choosing to only keep in our lives what makes us happy. Now that we have chosen to live in a place that is simple and carefree, it doesn’t take nearly as much to sustain it.

I have enjoyed watching our new business grow just as we did the old one. I certainly don’t have it all figured out, but I am happy that it has readjusted our priorities. Keeping our time in check so that we see our kids more, go on more dates with each other, and appreciate the beauty around us.

Sean and I don’t have our future mapped out step by step. Each day is an adventure as we navigate through. We constantly encourage our kids to seek what their giftings may be. Hoping they start some type of entrepreneurial endeavor even when they are young, so they will not always have to work for someone else, but have the freedom to choose how they spend the days in their lives. Letting their talents and dreams lead them.

I once read that being your own boss means you get to pick which eighty hours a week you work.  There is a lot of truth to that, but I am all for working smarter not harder. We haven’t whittled our work week down to four hours yet, like Mr. Ferriss, but we have found a new way of doing business and living.

Do you love what you are doing, or at least don’t feel stuck in it? Do the things that surround you make you happy, or are they a burden that you just have to work harder to maintain? No trick questions here, just something to think about.