Increasingly, more and more jobs and businesses seem to be “mobile”—spanning states, nations, and countries. With our global economy, it is becoming increasingly common for even small businesses to have customers and clients all over the world. For many of us, this can mean more travel might be necessary in order to keep our businesses thriving. But, for those of us running a home-based business—how much are we willing to travel? And, how much can we travel and still take care of our other obligations?
Since I have been busy focused on raising three children as a single parent, I’ve had to work to build a business that doesn’t involve much travel at all. That appears to be in the process of changing since I’ve accepted some work that will require international travel a couple times a year. Since my kids are all nearly grown teenagers, I decided that my family life could probably tolerate and support a little travel. When my children were small, however, it was totally out of the question.
I’m still not willing to be one of those people who travel all the time. I realize that there can be very good income for individuals who can build businesses (or work more traditional jobs) where travel is a major part of the job description—but that’s not for me. I’m willing to forgo the income opportunities in order to be available as Mom, friend, etc. It hasn’t always been easy, however, as I’ve had to pass up some pretty lucrative opportunities in order to keep the focus on family.
While operating a home business means that we are in charge, to a certain extent, of our work hours and conditions—including travel–it also means that we have to make decisions about things such as how much travel we are willing to do in order to make our businesses thrive. It’s always a weighing of the pros and cons, and in the end, deciding what is best for our families and our businesses—both long and short term.
See Also: Travel Trends–Parents Only Vacations and Top 5 “Sweet” Travel Destinations for Families