Money is one of the most common talking points at the moment. It’s no secret that costs have soared, leaving many people struggling to make ends meet. Managing your finances won’t eradicate high rates of inflation or expensive rent and mortgage costs, but it can help to reduce the risk of getting into debt and…
I think today I’d like to just rant a little about the sheer chaos of renting a place. So here in the UK, it’s kind of unusual to plan to rent somewhere far in advance. Things become available very less minute. This is not stressful at all. So my boyfriend and I went to look…
I can see a light glowing dimly at the end of the tunnel of this PhD journey, which I say to you from a desk in the bottom floor of the school library on a lovely June morning (it’s lovely June because the undergrads are gone and peace reigns in this library at the moment).…
Stage managing can be a difficult job to balance with anything else. The hours are long. You don’t always know exactly when you’ll be needed. And you may be nomadic – out on tours, cruise ships, or hopping contracts to where ever the next place is that might hire you. And early career stage management…
Oh, the digital age! It’s like we’ve got the world at our fingertips, literally. But as much as we love our endless streams of content and instant connections, there’s a thin line between making the most of it and, well, overdoing it big time. We’ve all been there, caught in the vortex of scrolling, watching,…
Starting as a freelancer can be exciting and liberating. You get to choose your own projects, set your own hours, and work from wherever you want. This flexibility can lead to a better work-life balance, allowing you to spend more time with family and friends, or pursue hobbies and interests. Freelancing can also offer the…
Profile I am thirty-nine years old, a digital event producer and occasional freelance stage manager. I make $55/hour at the digital production company I work with, though work has been very slow this year. I work a variety of small side hustles and am a full-time student working on a PhD in Drama. Spending &…
I usually spend Memorial Day weekend camping in the woods with my family. However, this year, since we’re already heading to America for two weeks at the end of July, that just wasn’t feasible. In the UK, they have an end of May bank holiday on the same Monday we usually celebrate Memorial Day, so…
I have been trying to think about abundance and gratitude and all the good perspective things that help make life a little easier. Maybe this is influenced by the sun finally reappearing in this cloudy, drizzly country. Maybe it’s influenced by my students’ Theatre Festival and the fact that I have been living in a…
I’d like to pause in our regular programming and take a minute today to talk with you about one of my favorite annual events that is happening this weekend. The Broadway Stage Management Symposium. This event is an incredible opportunity for stage managers at all stages in their careers. To this day, I am still…
You might ask, what does it cost to get a PhD? And to answer this question, you might find a school you like, look up the tuition cost, multiply it by 4 (or 5 or 6 or 7 or…. sometimes the number of years a PhD may take can be unclear) and go, ah, a…
Introduction Dressing impeccably is a potent blend of art and etiquette that can significantly enhance your first impression in both professional and personal spheres. Style is a language that conveys personality, anticipates the occasion’s requirements, and exhibits a keen eye for detail. Whether stepping into a pivotal boardroom presentation or making an entrance at an…
Profile I am thirty-nine years old, a digital event producer and occasional freelance stage manager. I make $55/hour at the digital production company I work with, though work has been very slow this year. I work a variety of small side hustles and am a full-time student working on a PhD in Drama. Spending &…
I have struggled a little this winter with what I suspect is some seasonal depression. And I am also a person who struggled with ‘turning off.’ When I’m working on a project, I just do it – borderline obsessively – until it is done. PhDs don’t work like that. And I don’t know if it’s…
So I’m clearly not the most struggling student, but I have noticed that food is always one of my worst areas on my budget. I think it’s because it’s so easy to justify it as a need. But when it’s necessary, it’s very doable to scale back. Below are a few things I’ve learned about…
Pexels – CC0 License It seems that the retro gaming world is experiencing a major revival right now. Lots of people are investing in consoles like the Steam Deck or the Retroid to relive parts of their childhood and it’s easy to see why people are doing this right now, especially in the ensuing years…
So I’m a little behind this year, but I thought we could do our bi-annual dig into the Stage Manager Survey Report. You might be wondering, what is the Stage Manager Survey Report. Run by David J., McGraw, the report has been happening since 2006 in an effort to better share info about the industry…
Profile I am thirty-nine years old, a digital event producer and occasional freelance stage manager. I make $55/hour at the digital production company I work with, though work has been very slow this year. I work a variety of small side hustles and am a full-time student working on a PhD in Drama. Spending &…
I’ve been thinking a lot about perseverance. Tenacity. Grit. I remember having so much trouble getting into a doctoral program, that once I was in, I was astonished by how often some folks would tell me the hard part was over, I just had to do it now. If I got in, it could be…
Image Credit: Microsoft Edge from Unsplash. Blogging has long been one of the best ways to make money online. It’s an ever-growing industry, with countless would-be entrepreneurs trying it. While not all of these see success, quite a few of them do. If you want to make money blogging, you’ll have to put the time…
I did something really wild this week. I subscribed to Disney +. And I have been thinking, and laughing at myself a little, about how much of an absolutely wild splurge it feels like. If you’ve been around a while, you know cash is a little tight these days. I’ve been cash flowing a doctoral…
Image Credit. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to look your best all the time. In fact, there can be a lot of benefits to paying some attention to your appearance. Whether it’s fair or not, it’s a fact that society favors people who look more attractive. You might find that strangers are more open and…
Many accountants dream of becoming certified public accountants (CPAs), and of basically landing a job in the public sector. This is a career that comes with numerous benefits, some of which are listed on this page. Public accountants provide various services to businesses, such as auditing, financial statement preparation, as well as tax preparation, and…
**The links in this post are referral links, which means if you click them, I get a small financial reward at no cost to you.** So for many years, I sang the praises of TurboTax. During the pandemic, they even sent me a fairly crazy thank you box with a blanket, water bottle and candle…
Profile I am thirty-nine years old, a digital event producer and occasional freelance stage manager. I make $55/hour at the digital production company I work with, though work has been very slow this year. I work a variety of small side hustles and am a full-time student working on a PhD in Drama. Spending &…