Days of Chains and Locks

The time of relying on a physical location for employment is dwindling.

Office workers are already poised perfectly for location independence as nearly anything which can be done on a computer in a cubicle is able to be performed by a computer [insert ideal location]. The cheesy stock photos of laptops on a beach are no longer captioned “paradise” but just “today’s office”. Construction workers and farmers have known travel for decades already. I can imagine a website where waiters, janitors, plumbers, beauticians and their ilk could all go to find a few months worth of employment as they move from here to there and in between.

Through the 20th century America fought for 40 hour work weeks, a minimum wage and weekends off. In 2013 we’re at a point where a family who loves the California suburban life can work in downtown Chicago, and the next startup can have five offices around the world and only five employees.

There will always be people who love owning land and becoming a part of a community. For them, this new way of existing means a way to work even in areas where their skillset doesn’t apply. And likewise, for those of us who find six months in the same zip code akin to canaries in a cage, it’s a way to make the world your backyard.

The chains of employment requiring a specific location are primed for unshackling, we just need a lingering portion of society to admit it and shed the locks.