Living in the country vs the city, as an independent product developer...

[Dien Rice]

Hi Gordon,

Wow, some great points in your post!

"One thing I know, country mouse or city rat, the successful infopreneur has a routine, good work ethic, and builds a mountain over time, although he/she may start with a mole hill."

Very true!

As the old saying goes...

Q. How do you eat an elephant?

A. One bite at a time...

My issue has rarely been with the "biting"... but knowing exactly what to "bite" next!

I've finally finally finally... got some kind of routine (at least as much as you can with an extremely curious 2-year-old running around, who hates going to sleep)!

Build build build... It's gonna be good...

Like you, I tend to like the "comforting hum of people being people" - as long as they don't interact with me too much when I'm working...

Pre-pandemic one of my most favorite places to work (on my laptop) was a good, swanky hotel lobby, though cafes and food courts were fine too...

And I've been known to pay for a desk in a co-working space, but there's often not enough human "buzz" for my taste...

As you know, I once worked as a copywriter for a subsidiary of a well-known newsletter publishing company. I worked in a room with all the other copywriters, as one of about 7 copywriters there. Very quiet... too quiet (just the sound of clicking computer keyboards). (Most of the other copywriters had headphones on while they wrote or came up with ideas for promos...)

Oh... great point on college towns! A nearby college or university does tend to make a place feel more "dynamic"... in my opinion...

Thanks for sharing your insights!

Best wishes,

Dien

Originally Posted by GordonJ

I'm currently a suburban hermit, although, I fondly recall those New Mexico sunsets out in the desert sipping a cold Dos Equis on Bud Riggs' ranch...and his nearest neigbor a mile away, barely visible.

But even old Bud, hermit and as anti-social as I am, went into town a few times a week, not only to make some extra dough cleaning headlights, but to eat and have some social contact (albeit at a distance).

Bill Myers, for most of his time when he wasn't moving or traveling, lived near the college town of Fayetteville. These towns are nice to have nearby. I have Kent.

As to the quiet and peace of the countryside, we suburbanites can find nearby tranquility, I with Mary Campbell's cave and Cuyahoga Valley National Park very near by...and often will use these green resources for uninterruipted thinking or contemplation.

We CAN eliminate the noise and shenanigans of a populated area, by not getting to involved in/with it.

Advantages are personal.

Big city offers excitement, contact, more people.
Small town is calmer, less stressful.
Country is peaceful, but as to any advantages...that all comes down to our preferences and how we work the best.

Sometimes, when in the country, I have a harder time managing and controlling my run away thoughts, than I do with the comforting hum of people being people (and thus avoiding contact).

You know I like to fly above the fray, and below the radar. There isn't much fray in the country, other than what we make...and not much radar to avoid either.

I opt for the best for me both worlds...being able to escape suburbia whenever needs be, and not have to go very far to do it.

Gordon

P.S. One thing I know, country mouse or city rat, the successful infopreneur has a routine, good work ethic, and builds a mountain over time, although he/she may start with a mole hill.