During the conversation about mies-en-place, @macsparky mentioned switching back and forth between a briefcase and a backpack and using the foam cutouts in his tool chest to help with that. I’ve got the same problem, but a different solution.
For many years I carried a Tom Bihn Smart Alec backback to work. When I stopped carrying my MacBook Pro to work every day, I switched to a Tom Bin Ristretto shoulder bag. Since I stuck with each bag for a long time, I could get the bag I was using every day set up with all of the gear I wanted to carry. Now, I’m moving much closer to my job and I’ll be walking to work every day. I’m going to be bouncing back and forth between the Ristretto and the Smart Alec depending on how much I have to carry that particular day. I didn’t want to spend a bunch of time moving individual items from one bag to another, nor did I want to buy duplicates of all this stuff. Instead, I got a Waterfield Padded Gear Pouch that I can slip out of one bag and into the other with all the stuff I want in both bags. I’ve only had it for two days so far, but I’m liking it quite a bit.
Pro photographers (and duffers) often end up collecting camera bags, trying to find the right size, shape and setup for various amounts of gear. I know one pro photographer, now retired, who has well over a dozen bags he’s collected over the years, stuffed into the roof area of his garage. It’s all too easy to chase after the latest-greatest.
I jumped off that train a while back by simply finding a couple of (non-photo) bags I liked and simply using inserts for camera+lenses, or padded sleeve for a notebook. It’s actually a more flexible, cheaper setup, you can switch bags at any time, and you don’t have to use a bag that screams ‘camera’ or ‘computer’. I know an Australian photojournalist who does this with a diaper bag, lol.
@MacSparky As a free agent with two young kids in primary school (they’re 11 and 9 right now), I must say that it’s tough to implement the 7th week sabbatical that Sean McCabe talked about.
Am following him for about 3 years and have not yet succeeded on this topic. The best I could do was to synchronize my sabbaticals with school holidays but it’s not the same (only parents can understand this imo).
So what I’ve implemented instead are long sabbatical week-ends every 4 weeks. This week-end starts on Friday at noon and I go to the spa in the afternoon. It’s a recurring event in my calendar.
Then Saturday and Sunday are dedicated to anything but work. Can be a passion project, trying a new piece of software or spending a day at the zoo or amusement park with my family.
Having a meditation practice and taking the time for lunch, snack breaks and a walk on a daily basis helps alleviate the need for a full week off.
Besides, it’s easier to accommodate client work and support with one 1/2 weekday off every 4 weeks than being totally unreachable for a full week, especially as a solopreneur and for my business (In-person Apple training and consulting).
Hope this can be helpful somehow.
When @macsparky talked about how people from Washington DC said that giving up a car for Uber was nothing new, it reminded me of the old William Gibson quote, “The future is already here — it’s just not very evenly distributed.”
holy cow!!! i was quoted in a podcast LOL super cool