I can still hear the sound of the waves crashing ashore, and smell the suntan lotion wafting through the air.

Ahhhh. I just got home from a fantastic beach vacation with my family.

We boogie boarded, built sand castles, watched ghost crabs, fished, and went parasailing (it was our first time!)

The coolest part about this vacation, was that in between all the fun, I was able to sneak in a few hours of work each day, poolside. That’s because the majority of the work I do can be done virtually.

While I do teach in-person adapted piano lessons and facilitate in-person music therapy sessions at schools and libraries here in Pennsylvania, a great deal of the work I do can be done ‘virtually’ anywhere.

Here are just a few of the work tasks I was able to get done while at the beach:

  • My virtual music therapy sessions for afterschool programs for students with autism & related disabilities
  • Virtual jazz piano lessons
  • A Zoom meeting with a new music therapy contractor who will be joining our team (yay!)
  • Grading for the Intro to Music Therapy Course I teach for University of Miami
  • Prep work for the next package of email ideas for Elevate subscribers (it’s an Outer Space theme and it’s going to be a good one!)
  • Sending emails to set up new clients and contracts
  • Invoicing contracts

Don’t get me wrong – I love to unplug just as much as anybody.

But, I find that doing an hour or so of work each day helped me stay on top of things so I’m not overwhelmed today, my first day “back in the office.”

I am grateful for my flexible work set up that allows me to work and do what I absolutely love, while still having time to attend field trips and events at my children’s school.

If you are hoping to create a flexible work set up for yourself, know it is possible, but may take time.

15 years ago, I was working full time as an employee at United Community Options of Miami, while being a TA and completing my masters degree at University of Miami, AND seeing private clients on the side.

That was the start of my private practice that has grown to what it is today – a team of thirteen that provides services in Florida, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Washington DC.