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View Full Version : You Know You're a Crazy Self-Employed Person When...



Blessed
06-29-2009, 08:39 PM
...you have surgery, pop a few pain pills and keep on working.

So, I had a baby on June 17th - had quite a bit of excitement in the hospital (if you really want to know you can read about it here (http://crazydogslife.blogspot.com/2009/06/too-much-excitement-at-hospital-baby.html)) and still put in a six hour day one day in the hospital, then pulled about a 60 hour week last week too. Including an all-nighter on Thursday night to have a newspaper to the printer by Friday morning. I knew ahead of time that this month was going to be busy but "knowing" and "doing" are two different things.

Granted, I'm a graphic designer - my work is not strenuous or physically demanding, but still...

Anyway - my point is that to me this is no big deal - I have clients, they have projects that need to be done now so I'm working. My clients like me, like my work and are happy they didn't have to find anyone else to try to get this done. Other people I know who are not self-employed are appalled that I'm working - they keep asking when I'm going to take some time off. I saw my doctor today for a follow-up and apparently the nurses are still talking about me - in part because I "died" for 10 seconds in the OR but mostly because I was up working the next morning while I fed my baby. I have a job to do so I'm doing it - is that attitude something that only crazy self-employed people have or am I a work-aholic?

Patrysha
06-30-2009, 12:13 AM
I was not that dedicated to work!!

I took time off for mine - sort of. When I had my first baby back when EI only paid out for six months (now it is one year). But while I had an income I started preparing for my first home based business about a week after the first was born.
I continued operations until the day after my second was born.

But I only closed down because we were moving. We moved fourteen or so (I forget) hours North when baby 2 was 8 days old.

It was up North that I began writing or at least exploring it as an option. I eventually got started with that about three moves later.

I was self employed when the third was born (website and newsletter for childcare providers) but I gave it up when he was about three months old (too much work for too little income) and revised my approach over the next three months and launched a new business...promotions and planning :-)

Dan Furman
06-30-2009, 01:08 PM
I know how you feel, Blessed (well, not really - I never squeezed out a.. you know :) )

But I *do* know what it's like to always be "on". I haven't had a sick day in.... nine years. Hell, I haven't had a real day off in the same timeframe. At the very least, even on vacation, I checked e-mail, my webstats, thought of a new way to market myself, etc. I simply can't turn it off.

Now, I'm not a workaholic by any means. I'll get up and play my X-Box or go to the mall in the middle of the day, etc. But business is always "there" in some sense, WAY beyond what it was when I had (one of my many) jobs. At a job, you can call in sick, and prettymuch forget about it all day. Or leave Friday, and not think much of it until Monday. Not really possible when working for yourself. At least not the way I do it :)

vangogh
06-30-2009, 10:39 PM
You can generally find me working weekends and holidays to some degree and I relax by reading books on design and development and marketing. Does that get me in the workaholic club? Doesn't feel like work to me, though.

By the way I didn't make the connection when you first posted the news, but Brandt shares the same birthday as my mom.

Blessed
07-01-2009, 12:01 AM
I know what you are saying Dan! I'm the same way... except that I'd rather hit the library, consignment store and thrift stores in the middle of the day instead of the mall :)

I don't "feel" like a workaholic because I do take time to play with my kids, do a bit of bargain hunting and pursue a few of my other hobbies - but at the same time work, my deadlines and thinking of ways to generate more revenue are always part of my thought process.

Blessed
07-01-2009, 12:10 AM
Steve - I like to relax by reading novels, biographies and cookbooks!

It's neat that Brandt shares a birthday with your mom - I was just happy that I didn't have him on my birthday - the 10th!

KristineS
07-01-2009, 12:47 PM
I think I probably am a part of the workaholic club too.

I've been trying to concentrate on relaxing a little more lately, but I'm not sure how successful I've been.

Harold Mansfield
07-01-2009, 07:47 PM
Congratulations on the baby!

That story reminds me of an old Richard Pryor joke about women working in the fields, "back in the day", giving birth and the kid gets right in right in on the production line.

As for me, I'm still on the cuff of success or not so I know how you feel. I find it very hard to turn off my computer at night, because there is always something that needs to be done and it never feels like I ever get it all done...because I never do.

huggytree
07-01-2009, 09:17 PM
congrats on the baby

I had a job where i got a piece of metal in my eye (had it happen before, so i knew what it was)....and then cut my hand open when a hack saw slipped....took my rubber glove off and the fingers of the glove looked like a hand was still in there because it was full of blood....duck taped my hand....finished the job 3 hours later....was going to go out for a fish fry before going to the urgent care, but the wife said they may not be open after..

stitches in the hand and had to scrape out the metal from my eye..

it was a drain repipe, so i couldnt just leave and come back the next day.

yes i was wearing safety glasses...it must have bounced.

Harold Mansfield
07-01-2009, 10:08 PM
congrats on the baby

I had a job where i got a piece of metal in my eye (had it happen before, so i knew what it was)....and then cut my hand open when a hack saw slipped....took my rubber glove off and the fingers of the glove looked like a hand was still in there because it was full of blood....duck taped my hand....finished the job 3 hours later....was going to go out for a fish fry before going to the urgent care, but the wife said they may not be open after..

stitches in the hand and had to scrape out the metal from my eye..

it was a drain repipe, so i couldnt just leave and come back the next day.

yes i was wearing safety glasses...it must have bounced.

Dude, you're like Fire Marshall Bill ! :eek:

huggytree
07-02-2009, 09:07 AM
ive had metal in my eye 3x....one time was over the weekend and it started to rust..they had to take alittle dremmel tool and grind out the rust..very freaky

ive had stitches 2x

ive gotten pvc primer in my eyes a bunch of times...one time was sooooo bad my vision was 20/100 for a few hours...took 3 days to recover...very painful...a chemical burn of the cornea....I wear safety glasses full time when doing my job....havent had an injury in 2 years....

its a very physical job with lots of sawing,cutting, smashing, chemicals.....lots of places to get hurt.

cbscreative
07-02-2009, 04:23 PM
Wow, huggy, why would anyone want to do your job cheap?

I'm a lt like the rest of you, work whenever, but one of the advantages to being self employed is you can take off and enjoy a nice day if you want to. You might end up working till 3 am to make up for it, but you get to make that choice.

The title of this thread reminded me of the joke, "You know you have problems if you are self employed and have human resource issues."

orion_joel
07-02-2009, 08:56 PM
When i was in Hospital overnight last year, i would have liked to have my laptop there and probably would have laid there all night playing (i mean working) on it. But you hear to many stories of things that go missing at hospital, and it was not something i wanted to risk.

Blessed
07-03-2009, 10:29 AM
I took the whole day off yesterday to go on a day trip with my sister (who is in town to "help" me. Actually I know she is here for one reason to spoil rotten my kids :D) But anyway - we drove about 3 1/2 hours and spent some time with my sister-in-law who lives in Alabama but was up here with some of the kids from the church she and her husband pastor for youth camp and my best friend. It was a really nice day!

Now... I'm back to work - but it will be an easy day today!

Oh and Huggy - I'm sure glad my job isn't like yours - I'd probably cut my arm off or something crazy like that, I'm definitely not coordinated enough for a job that required physical effort :)