Wouldn't we all love to have the opportunity to work from home? The benefits are endless if you follow some guidelines. The key to working at home and successfully running any business from home is "professionalism". While you will certainly have more flexibility than in a traditional office, you should still follow the same principles. - Resources
- Dress for work
- Maintain a schedule
- No distractions
You will need to set up your office with the proper equipment. For instance, if you receive and send faxes, you will need a fax machine. If you make a lot of copies, you may want to invest in a copy machine. It would not be very productive to have to run to the library every time you needed to fax or copy something. If you have files, you may need filing cabinets. You may need to consider shelves or even a separate phone line. Anything you utilize in an office out of the home, you will need in your home office.Even though you are at home, you should "go to work" dressed. This does not mean you have to wear a suit and tie, but you probably won't feel very professional in your pajamas and slippers. If you feel professional, your work will be professional. So, pretend you are going to an office and get dressed. You should also try to maintain a fairly regular schedule. It is a good idea to maintain office hours during office hours. Don't fall into the trap of sleeping till noon even though it may be tempting. Again maintain professionalism. I have school age children so for me this is easy. My son gets dropped off at 8:30 and I am back home to start my work day by 8:35. Distractions can be a big part of failure for those who work at home. You should really have a work room that is off limits to family and children during work hours. If you have small children, maybe a family member or neighbor can help. But believe me, it is very difficult to write a proposal or talk to a client when the little ones need your constant attention. So, it may be worth the investment to hire help if you need to. The phone can also be a problem. My family and friends thought that since I was home, I could chat all day. So I had to state clearly to my friends and family, that I am working at such times and I would not be available until after hours. Of course, I still get phone calls, but I just let the machine pick up. Working at home does give you the flexibility to spend more time with your family and do what is important to you. So long as you set guidelines that will help you be the most productive and happy. If you only want to work 5 hours a day and you know this will be a sufficient amount of time to successfully complete your goals, go for it. Just don't fall into the trap that you will start tomorrow (every day). Write down your goals and what you need to do to accomplish them. Then, stick to it! Wishing you much Success and Happiness ! Michelle Moglia |
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