This post can probably be in the catalog of the Consultant Code.

Since many people are working remotely, internet connectivity has transformed from a luxury to a necessity. There was a consultant on my project whose internet went out and somehow that meant he was completely unavailable.

If my internet goes out, my back-up is a mobile hotspot. When I was traveling, it was convenient to have a hotspot in case the internet was acting up at the hotel or if I needed to access the internet on the go. It’s also more secure than relying on a public WIFI hotspot. If the back-up goes out, I would consider going to a coffee shop or another public spot depending on how long the outage is projected to last. All else fails, if I have no access to the internet, I have my regular meeting dial-in numbers and meeting codes to call into meetings. 

If I am at wit’s end with no internet and somehow can’t call into meetings, then I don’t bill any hours. It’s one thing to be sitting on the phone with the help desk troubleshooting an issue. You are there because of work. But if you are dead in the water, you should not be billing that time.