Setting Up a Home Office

So you want to start working from home and avoid the commute to work. Here are some basic tips and tricks to setting up a good working enviroment in your home.

First and foremost, find an area in your home with the least amount of noise. A seperate room with a door that closes to minimize the amount of background noise is best. Chances are you will be on the phone alot and you do not want the person on the other end to be able to tell that you work from home. This is a must for the majority of companies that contract with work at home individuals.

If you are not able to select an seperate room for you area, then set up a way that people know when you are working so they do not make much noise in the background while you handle your calls. I personally hang a sign on my office door to let everyone know that I am currently working so they do not just walk in and start talking to me. You can devise your own system that works for you and your family.

Now that you have an area in your home to set up the office, what will you need. Lets start with the furniture. You will want a desk and chair that is comfortable. This is where you will be working, so you want to be comfortable while you work to help keep a positive attitude. You want to be able to sit with your feet flat on the floor while still being able to reach the keyboard and mouse easily while sitting with your back flat against the chair.

Next lets talk about your computer. A large majority of your companies that contract with work at home individuals require Windows XP with Internet Explorer 6.0. Very few allow Mac computers at this time. You will want a processor speed of at least 1 Ghz and 1GB of memory. Most say 512MB of memory is sufficent (which it is), but I do recommend the 1 GB to help minimize slow responses from programs or when having multiple windows open. I will talk about how to maintain your computer at a later date.

OK, we have our office area picked out and know the type of computer we need. Next we need to talk about our telephone line. You will need a dedicated phone line for your working needs. It cannot have any extras services on it, such as call waiting, voicemail, etc. It also cannot be a cell phone or VoIP phone line. Check with your local phone company as many offer a phone line that charges as a per min outbound charge with unlimited inbound calling. Depending on who you contract with, your calls should be inbound so you will not have the need for outbound minutes.

This will work out cheaper for you on your monthly phone bill for that line. Just be sure to explore all your options to reduce your overall cost of the added line into your home. Less money going out will mean more money in your own pocket.

In additon to your phone line you will need a headset so your hands are free while talking on the phone. Prices can range from $25 to over $100 depending on the model you choose. I recommend buying a higher quality model that offers background noise reduction with adjustable volumes for both the earpiece and the microphone. You may also want to pick up a second cheaper model to keep around as a backup in case you main headphone breaks. This will help ensure that you can keep working till you are able to replace the higher quality headset.

Now that you have all the equipment you need to set up a proper home office, all you need to do is get out there and find a good opportunity for yourself. I will discuss this in detail at a later date. I hope you found this article informative and that you look for my future listings.