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I am adamant about having at least one solid "no IT work" day every 6-8 days. If I let work encroach on this, things go bad swiftly. I have no clue why, but I've tested the theory enough to have finally gotten it through my thick skull: you NEED a day off, completely O-F-F.

I suggest anyone thinking "that's impossible," good luck with that," "must be nice" or the like: just keep that in the back of your mind, and try to nudge your reality toward that goal. I am walking testament to the massive positive effect of having a day to yourself.

The first steps on the road to a more natural existence (always a good thing) are to try to free up small blocks of time throughout the entire week to take care of the little tasks that if left undone, would soon pile up and become a daunting mess of it's own, compounding the negative pressures.

I elected to reach for less money in order to have more of a life of my own. You only live once. Few really consider that obvious fact, I mean really ponder it. I have been too close to death, several times, to miss the importance of striving to enjoy every second of my trip through space on this rock.

I never have personal tasks festering, no household chores taking the back seat, when I have a personal need, I prioritize it. It's a lot easier than you might think. It amounts to 'just do it,' you'll see in retrospect that you are more productive on the job knowing all your personal affairs are in order first and foremost.

BTW I work my tail off Saturday and Sunday, and usually set aside Wednesday, Tuesday or Monday for 'my day,' in that order. Wednesdays are ideal for me because of other people's schedules. Nothing mystical about Wednesday.

And I would estimate I get upwards of 70% of all my work done on those 2 days. Silence is golden. People in an office who are themselves working on "the weekend" usually have a more sympathetic, even a more 'team oriented' perspective. They want to get their work done and get out.

Fortunately most of the people I'd run into on a "weekend" are the proprietors, professionals who themselves appreciate the quiet on weekends to get things done, or are a more 'skeleton' type of staff, the type who wouldn't be tugging at my sleeve to help them with their Excel problems, and who's answer to almost anything I could ask would be "I don't know."

I have quite successfully morphed my interactions with clients ever more to my favor, which seems to be to the clients favor as a result, my being happier and under less pressure from outside my relationship with the client has been a win-win. I got here by keeping those two time considerations I mentioned above in the back of my mind for a long, long time.

1) Insist on a solid day off all to yourself. Don't force yourself to accomplish anything, either. If something does get accomplished on this day, it's bonus.

That's because of point 2), you're going to get most of life's tasks and chores done as they impose themselves, a few minutes here, a few hours there, try to prioritize your needs and try to take whatever time, whenever, to get that stuff over with.

This can only be attempted by an independent contractor, of course. If you're punching a clock, and the job is eroding your health and/or well-being, your only option is to walk.

Now, I wrote this as fast as I could so I can get back to work... I apologize for any typos or other errors as there may be.