Image and the Home Office

If you are a regular reader of my blog you will know that I run my little ‘empire’ from my home office.  I have even blogged about the importance of having a creative space to work from within the home and we have given you tips on how to set up your home office so that it is an efficient, welcoming and stylish space. 
The home based business is no longer a novelty and it is recognised as one of the fastest growing sectors of the employment market.  Interestingly however, I still find people questioning the validity of this way of working.  Where I see my home based business as giving me much needed flexibility, others see it as ‘cushy’, or a bit of a hobby.  Perceptions can be tricky to change en-masse, but what we can do as home based business owners is chip away at them by being very good at what we do; and that should be your aim in business anyway.
When it comes to business, home based or otherwise, image is everything and the way you present yourself and your products and services will affect how you are seen by the market-place.    A mere 7% of the message you project is based on what you say, whilst 93% is based on how you say it and what you look like. 
Ok.  If you have clients coming to your home office the how you look part of this statement should be a no brainer.  How you project yourself and your office to them will be absolutely vital.  In fact, the need to convey a good image is more important because, as discussed above, some people continue to see home based businesses as less professional, which means they see you as less professional. 
However, even if you don’t have clients visiting your home office, the way you feel within yourself will be projected in the quality of your work and the tone of your voice, over email or the phone.  If you are working from home, you may be able to hide the fact that you have not got dressed or brushed your hair yet, but does this come across in your manner?  For example, if you are conducting business calls from the couch, with the television going in the background and your feet up, it is very likely that you will project a far too casual attitude.  You will undoubtedly be distracted and clients will soon realise that they don’t have your full attention. 
Here are some must follow tips for home based business owners:
If you have clients visiting your home office:

• You must have a dedicated office space and it must be clean and tidy.
• The impression from the street must be welcoming.  If the grass is overgrown and littered with rubbish or toys you will have created a negative first impression.
• The pathway to the door must be clear and unobstructed and your house should be clearly numbered.
• If the office is located out of view from the street make sure you have signage to assist visitors.
• Ensure pets are restrained.
• Have your business cards and any qualifications or awards displayed in a professional way.

For everyone:

• Dress for success every day.  How you dress will depend upon whether you have clients to see or not, however even if you see no one all day consider making a bit of an effort to dress differently to how you would normally dress at home.  Psychologically this helps in preparing yourself for work.  How this works will be different for everyone, but if you need to dress up a little and put some lipstick on to feel professional, do it.  I dress ‘casual’ at home when not seeing clients.  However my daily work wardrobe is not sloppy.  I wear good quality casual clothing such as linen pants or skirts and structured t-shirts or cotton shirts.  I must admit I am a barefoot girl at home but I live in a hot place and my toenails are always painted!  However, I always shower before I get into my day, put on lip-gloss (no makeup for me at home) and do my hair.  This sets me for the day ahead.
• Practice your telephone manner and work on your email writing skills.  Always answer the phone in a professional manner.  If you have stopped for lunch and popped the radio or television on, turn them off before you answer.  If you do not see clients face to face and communicate largely through email and via the telephone, this is where you are going to make your impressions.  When making calls and writing emails do so from your office.  This will help you feel more professional and this will come across in your communications.
• Be consistent and reliable.  Flexibility is one thing but letting others down is not ok.  If you have a Skype meeting set for a certain time, keep it.  No ifs, buts or maybes!
• Make sure all of your correspondence, paper and electronic based, is professional.  Take some time to design an email signature for business purposes and some standard stationary such as ‘with compliments slips’, invoices etc and of course you must have a business card.
• Consider how phone calls are managed when you are not in the office.  If you expect to receive a large volume of calls you may need an answering service, if not, a message service linked to your phone may be sufficient.  You may also like to consider having a separate line for business.  You should also have a PO Box; never use your home address for business correspondence.  Likewise you need a professional email address that is linked to your domain name if you have a website. 

Regardless of whether you have clients coming to the home or not you need to set a minimum level of professionalism for yourself at all times.  By doing this you will find it easier to make that transition from the way you live in your home, to the way you work in the home.  One of the things people find most difficult when they first start out in a home based business is knowing how to draw the line between work and home. 
Work can easily invade your home life if you let it and likewise, it can be very difficult to switch off from daily chores when working from home.  I have been working from home for over ten years (I completed my Degree from home also) and I still have to discipline myself when it comes to balancing work and home.  When my children come home in the afternoon I shut the door on the office until after dinner.  When I first started out I had the computer sitting beside me whilst I caught up on their day, did homework and even whilst I prepared dinner.  But that is far too distracting and very unfair to my children.  Similarly, having the flexibility to empty the dishwasher whilst I make a coffee can be great, but doing five loads of washing is going to eat into work time.  You need to know when to step away from both home and work. 
I highly recommend setting regular work hours.  Of course these can be flexible and as I keep saying, having flexibility is one of the great benefits of working for yourself.  However, without a routine to follow your week will easily slip away from you and you will look back and wonder how you achieved so little.  You have to make an ongoing commitment to this and you will find that from time to time it needs to be reviewed as your business grows.  I have recently compiled a list of the things I must do on a regular basis and the projects I am working on.  I then divided these tasks, and my study and professional development commitments between the hours and days I work.  Seeing it all there makes it very easy for me.  I now know what needs to be attended to each day and I stick to it.  When I need to deviate I know that I need to find that time somewhere else in my week and plan for it.
Projecting a good image from your home based business does not mean you need to be chained to your desk for the day in a corporate suit, in full makeup, but it does require you to set a standard of professionalism for yourself, regardless of whether clients come to your office or not.  And one last tip.  You don’t need to refer to the fact that you are working from home with every person you speak to.  This is only applicable if you have clients coming to see you.  Move away from referring to your office as a home office in conversations.  Start seeing your home office as your professional place of work; your office.  When you see it this way, this will be reflected to others too.