Home Office - Is It For You?

One of the most obvious perks of being a freelance writer is working for yourself. Being your own boss means making your own hours and having the freedom to work right out of your home. Eliminating a long commute to the office is nice but is it realistic for you to run your writing business out of a home office? Not everyone can do it.

First of all, do you already have a home office set up or will you need to acquire one? Most of us have what we already need to get started. Internet connection, phone line and a reliable computer is about it. Some people may find that they need a printer and fax machine regularly as well. A nice thing about home offices is that it allows you to write off a percent of power, internet and other stationary expenses.

Distraction is the main thing that hinders most work at home writers. If young children are home or you have animals, it can get annoying and difficult to work. Trust me on the animal thing. When you have cats knocking things down, climbing curtains and doing all of the fun things they do when you're out during the day, chasing after them involves getting up from the computer. Do this enough times and you may just pack up your laptop and head to a coffee shop instead. Try creating an office space in your home that is off limits to all but yourself.

If you have the financial ability to do so, you may wish to consider renting an office outside the home. By having a place to be at everyday, it alleviates the temptation to lay around in your PJs all day. As glorious as that sounds, it puts a real cramp in your productivity. Even if you don't have a separate office, avoid the pajama thing. If you feel like a professional writer, you work like one. Pajamas don't do much to endorse that feeling.

Create a schedule for your home office time much like you would any other work day. By staying too flexible you risk only sitting down to write when you feel like it. And as much as we all love our freelance writing career choice, like any job there are "I don't wanna" days. Keeping a firm schedule makes productivity a priority.

Keep your office space free of anything that isn't work related. Eliminating the distraction level is essential.



~Trina M. Lee
www.tmlwritingservices.info