LOCATED MOBILITY: LIVING AND WORKING IN MULTIPLE PLACES

Abstract

The phenomenon of working away from a traditional office space is broadly called remote or mobile work. When work takes one away from a primary residence for an extended period of time, home and work take on new meanings. Working and living from a distance requires personal, social, and emotional flexibility. I use the term located mobility to refer to simultaneously living and working in more than one space. This was the case when I relocated for a three-and-a-half-month internship in San Francisco, California, and simultaneously managed the logistical and emotional aspects of my home and work lives in Detroit, Michigan. This article illustrates by way of personal examples a traditional work setting, a remote work setting, and my lived experience of located mobility. I discuss the emotional and practical demands of living and working away from a primary residence for an extended period of time and offer insight into managing the challenges associated with located mobility.