Boston Singers' Resource News Bulletin, July 30, 2002

BSR remote-office consultant and great friend, Phil Montero, offers advice for musicians "on the go." He has a website, YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com and a new book "WORK AT HOME: The Telework Job Seekers Handbook" A musician, himself, Phil shares with us his ideas on work/life balance and some basic equipment needs for mobile work. "In today’s world, working on the road and from non-traditional and home offices is fast becoming "business-as-usual". Thanks to developments in affordable technology and the growth of the Internet "YOU CAN WORK FROM ANYWHERE!" (Much of the following was taken, with permission,
from the YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com website:)

PHIL MONTERO and YOU CAN WORK FROM ANYWHERE .COM: YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com is an internet resource dedicated to providing people with information on teleworking. It contains hundreds of tips, tools, articles, newsletters, workshops, ideas and other resources to help improve the productivity of telecommuters, mobile workers, road warriors, executives, entrepreneurs and home-based workers. It also offers links to many resources to help you find more flexible or work at home job. The force behind You Can Work From Anywhere is Phil Montero, mobile work consultant and author of the new book "WORK AT HOME: The Telework Job Seekers Handbook; A roadmap to finding a legitimate work at home job, avoiding scams, and creating a more balanced life." http://www.YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com/ebooks/workathomejob/. The book "is a gold mine of resources and links for companies that hire teleworkers, community want ads and tips on writing a telework-related resume. Resources cover the U.S. and Canada, as well as a few international markets, " says Jeff Zbar of Network Work Worlds Net.Worker News.

Phil’s experience consulting and managing the mobile workforce has made him an expert in the field. On demand as a speaker, consultant, and trainer, Phil teaches organizations and individuals to be better mobile workers. He has over 12 years experience designing, implementing and maintaining business systems and remote offices. He has set up and supported remote users and their offices in a variety of capacities. He is a member of The International Telework Association & Council; The American Telecommuting Association; European’s Telework Association; The Canadian Telework Association; The American Society of Training and Development; COTSE TheYouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com website boasts one of the most comprehensive lists of mobile worker resources around, and features hundreds of links to telework information such as news and articles, case studies, telework basics, organizations, networking groups, support groups, products and services, brochures and books, seminars and workshops, consultants, job searching... the list goes on. The information is very smartly divided into 7 basic categories: info center, tech center, job search center, home office center, work-life balance center, seminars and workshops, and bookshelf. Each section is then further subdivided, so that the links are clearly defined and easy to get to. Phil acts as narrator throughout the busy site, and offers his own expert guidance, tips, and insight to help you along your way.

BSR: Your site is so comprehensive and you obviously have a real passion for helping people telework. How did the idea for "You Can Work From Anywhere" come about? Did you study it in school?

PHIL: Technology has always come naturally to me, and ever since I was young, I’ve had a goal of having a flexible career and lifestyle. We used to live in NJ and my Dad commuted to NYC every day. I saw how much that took out of him. I’m still amazed he was able to make the time and have the energy for me and my brother!I went to Ithaca College and was a Communications Major with an emphasis on Advertising and Public Relations. At the time I thought I was going to graduate and work for an Ad Agency writing ads and commercials.After college, I began to approach my employers with remote-work proposals. Unfortunately, though, despite my growing knowledge and research on mobile work, my request to work from home was often denied. As I learned more and more about mobile work. It was very clear to me that teleworking was feasible for many workers, and could provide more balance between work and personal life as well as increase productivity. I began teaching organizations about telecommuting.

BSR: Why are companies so reluctant to try telework? Certainly, computer, communication, and word-processing based jobs could easily telework these days?

PHIL: Many companies, I found, are afraid of allowing their employees to work outside the office and telecommute because they fear they won’t be able to manage them. Then there are other companies that allow people to work outside the office, but they very rarely provide any training on how to do it effectively. It was these two problems that became the impetus for YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com; it started in November of 1999 as part of a 2 day seminar I was running, and the website grew out of that. I wanted to help educate companies about all the benefits that telecommuting provides, and also help them implement telework successfully in their organization. More importantly, I wanted to help the mobile worker and those seeking to be a mobile worker.

BSR: I’ve found your book, WORK AT HOME: The Telework Job Seekers Handbook, to be so helpful, particularly because the YCWFA website is so overwhelmingly comprehensive, it can be difficult to know where to begin. The book lists everything in a logical order.Is it information from the site? Why did you decide to publish it?

PHIL: Thanks Lynn, I’m glad you find the book so useful! I found one of the questions I get asked most often from people is "Working from home sounds great, but how do I find a real job like this?" There are so many work at home scams around it’s easy to get discouraged and swindled. There ARE legitimate telework jobs are out there if you know how to look for them.Most of the books currently available on working from home show you how to start your own home-based business. Many people, instead, would like to have the best of both worlds - the stability of working for a company with a steady paycheck, but the ability to work from home and have a flexible schedule.In my eBook I take people step by step through everything they need to know in order to find a real work at home job for an existing company. This includes taking an objective look at their current skills and work style to determine whether they’re job is suitable for telecommuting and whether they would make a good remote worker. There is a whole chapter on scams (what to look for and how to avoid them), chapters on how to prepare your email resume, how to use job boards, and how to have a successful phone interview and over 100 pages (1000 links) of resources to help you find a job.

BSR: Given our busy schedules over many scattered locations, most musicians I know probably SHOULD consider themselves "mobile workers." What are some basic tele-equipment needs to be a local mobile worker? What about for those of us that travel nationally and/or internationally?

PHIL: That’s very true. Musicians are very mobile people! One of the keys to using mobile technology effectively is to choose the right tools for your workstyle. I think for a musician, a Palm Pilot PDA would be a great tool. Also, a cell phone. The PDA allows you to keep your contacts and schedule with you at all times. You can read my article on "Leave your laptop at home" for more information on what the Palm Pilot can do: (http://www.YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com/articles/) If you need to work on larger documents or work with graphics, however, then a laptop computer is probably a better choice. If email is one of your primary methods of communication, then setting yourself up with a web-based email account (like Yahoo or Hotmail) can really help you keep in touch. This allows you to check your messages from any computer connected to the web. If you are on tour, you can usually find a computer in either a library, hotel or Kinko’s where you can check your mail.

One thing to keep in mind if you travel outside the US, is to make sure you get a cellphone/service that will work abroad. Also, if you are traveling with a laptop you will need a special power adapter to handle the different currents in each location.

BSR: "The problem for most mobile workers is that they are not even aware of the variety of technology solutions that exist to help them with remote collaboration." You know, Phil, I’m not sure that many of us realize that we even have "remote collaboration problems." What are we missing?

PHIL: When I talk about remote collaboration, I mean working with a team where everyone is in a different location. I think this may be more often the case with musicians than "regular" office workers! Although musicians need to be together to rehearse, much of the planning and marketing efforts involved with putting on a successful performance can be done remotely. This is where the "virtual central office" comes in handy. In addition to email and instant messaging, a web-based virtual office such as www.CommunityZero.com, www.Intranets.com and www.OfficeClip.com. or an online shared document storage space such as a Yahoo Briefcase http://briefcase.yahoo.com or www.xdrive.com can create a central office space for online collaboration. These services allow you to post and view documents for downloading in a password protected web space so that you and others can access them from any web browser.

BSR: I know a singer that sometimes takes a voice lesson from her NYC Teacher over the phone. Certainly not ideal, but in a pinch?

PHIL: Wow - that’s great! People don’t give the phone enough credit for whatyou can do with it.There is a relatively new service I’ve heard of called the RocketNetwork (www.rocketnetwork.com) that lets musicians collaborate on music projects over the web. It used shared file storage for various tracks and compositions. That combines my music and telecommuting interests!I can’t wait to try it out!

BSR: Tell us more about your music background and MusicIsland.comI started out playing in band and singing in school (choir and barbershop).Then I got hooked on synthesizers and digital keyboards through college.Later, I decided to pick up Harmonica. That was a bit of a challenge because I found it’s hard to find someone to teach you how to play harmonica. The funny thing that ties the telecommuting and music together is that, at the time, I had a heinous 2 hour commuter each way to my job in NJ. I used the time to listen to tapes and practice the harmonica while sitting in traffic. I got some strange looks but I learned how to play!MusicIsland (http://www.MusicIsland.com) is a resource for Independent Musicians and unsigned bands. Artists get a free listing on the site and can also search through our comprehensive resource listing including one of the largest lists ofindependent record labels on the web.I will be relaunching the site in September with a new searchable database of resources and over 4000 new listings! Bands will be able toget not just a listing but a whole page to themselves. We’ll also be providing marketing training for members to help succeed in the world of Indie Music!

BSR: Are there any mobile communication trends that you see really taking off in the future? I remember when wireless phones first came out and I remember thinking "That’s interesting but most of us will never use that." Boy, was I wrong!

PHIL: Yeah,I said that too. Now I hardly go anywhere without my cell phone. There are a couple of things I see taking shape that I believe will grow rapidly over time. First of all, you are seeing a whole bunch of new products called "smart phones". They are cell phones with built-in PDAs, or in some cases they look more like PDAs with built in cell phones. This allows you to have your to do lists, calendar,contacts and phone all in one device.Secondly, more and more people are getting high-speed internet connections like Cable Modems and DSL and there is an increase in using the internet for audio and video conferencing. If both people have a fast connection, microphones and speakers, you can have real time conversations without the cost of a long distance call or long distance driving. If you also have those little web cameras, you can have a video conference. Finally, I think you will see a greater acceptance and demand for working outside the office. People seem to be taking a greater interest in work/life balance these days, and one of the benefits they are seeking is not bonuses or stock options but more flexibility in their schedule.

BSR: The advantages of teleworking are obvious and many, but I bet that some, like "work-aholics" and the "self-disciplined challenged" may have problems with this lifestyle. What are some of the other disadvantages? Is there anything that mobile work can NOT do right now?

PHIL: That is a really good point Lynn. One thing that is important to realize is that telecommuting is not for everyone or for every situation. There are times when you need to be face-to-face with others that you are working with. For example, as you know, it would be really difficult to rehearse without everyone in the same place. Also, business that requires access to a lot of visual information might need everyone centrally located. You also need to consider the type of information you are discussing with someone. More personal topics are usually bestdiscussed in person.It’s like the old saying, "The right tool for the right job." You not only need the right tools but you need to know how to use them effectively. That is a big part of what I’m trying to do with YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com. Help people choose the right tools for their work/life style and learn to use them properly.

BSR: Thanks for your time and knowledge, Phil!

For more information about Phil Montero or You Can Work From Anywhere, please visit the website: http://www.YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com. Or email phil@ycwfa.comphil@ycwfa.com

To order a risk-free, satisfaction-guaranteed-or-your-money-back copy of his hot selling book, "WORK AT HOME: The Telework Job Seekers Handbook," please go to http://www.YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com/ebooks/workathomejob/
Or email Phil@ycwfa.comphil@ycwfa.com