Step Six: Make Your Job Work For You

First, I'll give credit where credit is due. My life-partner had recommended I do this for some time. However, it wasn't until I heard Brandon Sanderson discuss working night audit, that I considered it seriously. So babe, I'm very sorry I didn't listen to you sooner, and thank you for showing me the door.

After loosing my job with Uber, I started looking for new options. After about a week, My life-partner suggested a night audit position again. We had both worked in hotels before while we were in college. However, she had been a General Manger and I work for a property management company handling their debt collection. By far one of the most entertaining jobs I've ever had.

I had already made major life changes, but was still looking for an even better way to make writing my first priority. In comes a Night Audit position. We found it in the paper under the classified section. This should give a great idea of how small of a town we moved to. I considered it a done deal.

Now, being a Night Auditor at a massive hotel in downtown Austin or any other large city is a very important job, and comes with a serious level of responsibility. However, in a small town, or even a hotel that's not down town in the city, being a Night Auditor is more of a glorified baby sitter. My number one responsibility is to insure the hotel doesn't burn down. After that comes closing out the business day and filing paper work. Paper work take maybe an hour, spread out over the course of the night.

Therefore, I get paid for eight hours of having to be at work, but only have to work for between one and two hours a night. This is where making your job work for you comes in! I'm getting paid to be at the hotel, and if a guest comes to the front desk I stop everything and help them. However, for a good four or five hours a night, I get paid to write my novel. It feels like getting an advance slowly, that's paid out every two weeks. What's really great is hotels are always looking for a night auditor. So I can keep doing this for years. If my hotel were to shut down, or they wanted to move me into a different position, I can always find a new job.

You can find the previous post here, Step Five: Shit Happens, and be sure to start from the beginning if you've missed out, Step One: Readdress Priorities.