Melissa Rich Author – Your Virtual Home Office Can Be a Reality!

Now that 2012 is here..it is time to put your work from home career in overdrive.

How can you go about increasing your business?

First-determine your skill set. What do you have that makes you stand out? Are you a creative writer? Do you have skills to type? Are you dabbling in the website business?

Second-update and add to your current skill set. If you are building websites, take a look at new features and services that can be added to websites and sign up for training to acquire new skills.

Third-Market, Market, Market. You are not the only one looking to boost business or make changes. Let your clients know what you are doing and what plans you have for them in 2012.

If you need help marketing your work from home business-check out our website www.yourvirtualhomeoffice.com

With my long but flexible working hours, I frequently find myself working up to 12 to 14 hours per day.     Being in front of the computer for hours at a time and sitting at my desk certainly causes additional stress upon the body.   To combat that problem, I have found the
following tips helpful:

• Taking short breaks from sitting periodically.  For example, I often find myself pacing during conference calls.
• Shifting positions frequently.   Sometimes I adjust the height of the chair or the placement of my feet.
• Ergonomic furniture that adjust easily to new positions.

If you are home based or office based, I hope the above tips help you feel more comfortable within your work space and help alleviate the physical stresses caused by sitting for extended periods of time.

Recently, I took a short vacation; so I took my home office essentials with me and worked from the hotel.    Even though I work from home, my home office is easy to pack and ready to go.  Here are a few of the essential items:

• A bag with essential supplies including pens, highlighters, a mini-stapler, calculator, etc.
•  Essential office files located in one place, so that they can be easily packed.
• Laptop computer.
  NOTE:   I have taken a vacation with a full size computer and compact screen.

Working from home certainly has its advantages, but being ready to work from any location with Internet access is even better!

Working from your virtual home office is a huge responsibility since you are solely responsible for your home business. Here are a few mistakes that you can avoid:

• Business hours-determine your set working hours or business hours before you begin working. This will alleviate problems separating working hours from family time.
• Rates-set your hourly rate or prices when you start working from home. Never agree to work for someone without a contract in place. This takes the awkward out of a business transaction. After all working from your virtual home office is your paycheck and you want to handle business transactions accordingly.
• Advertise-working from your virtual home office requires you to be the sole proprietor and responsible for adverting your work from home business or career. Never make the mistake of thinking that customers or clients are going to just come to you. Advertise-whether it is joining your local chamber of commerce or supporting your local soccer team-get your name and business out there to provide you with long term success working from your virtual home office.

Failing to plan and maintain scheduled tasks for a profitable home business can hinder success. Take the time to set up guidelines for your business to allow a lifestyle that provides balance between business and family. If you need ideas on a successful work from home business-check out Melissa’s book “Your Virtual Home office can be a Reality!”

We are about 2/3s done with the current year, so now is the time to review your 2011 goals and take corrective action where necessary.   Planning is so essential for successful home office operations, but it is just as important to periodically review those goals and analyze your progress.   If you are not well on your way to achieving your 2011 goals, determine how you can change course to meet your 2011 goals.

Always remember that having a goal is not enough; you need to measure your progress and continue moving forward towards those goals.  Best of luck to you in achieving your home office goals!

I describe myself as a unique individual since I am not like most people. I get up every morning at the same time and typically do things the same way every day. Being this dedicated to my internal schedule provides me with the time management skills to work successfully from home.

Is everyone a candidate for working from home? No. I have staff that work for our company that do not have the same dedication. They commit to certain hours weekly but  struggle on Friday morning to complete their agreed upon hours.

It does not make you a bad person because you need the daily comradory that comes from working in a traditional brick and mortar office. Some people like the daily drama that goes with the office setting. Me, I like the peace and quiet that comes from telecommuting in my corner of the house in my virtual home office.

If you need ideas on how to manage your virtual position-go to http://www.yourvirtualhomeoffice.com/index.php

A home office and working solo certainly provides a great deal of peace, free of typical office drama; however, that same sense of peace can also lead to a sense of monotony, repetition, and boredom.  There are days where the excitement of pursuing a new opportunity brings about the “thrill of the chase” invigoration; by more often than not, my home office operation is not full of excitement, but rather “ho-hum”.

Some days, I need a change of pace; so I seek out new tasks that will bring about a feeling of invigoration.  On those ho-hum days, I spend time looking towards the future and developing strategic plans to move towards that new goal.  That planning process allows me to get enthused, renewed, rejuvenated, and excited about the future.

Maybe you should spend some time reviewing your long range home office plans and get excited about the future!

I hear all the time from people wanting to find a job working from home. My daughter is now seeking a work from home position. It sounds great but how would you get started? I started my work from home journey back in the day when work from home was in its infancy and it was really hard to locate the companies that were real but at least there were not as many scammers.

Most of the companies then wanted you to purchase their book of companies that offered work from home or charged money for special software. The best advice I can say to those seeking a work from home position is: Take a look at your skill set and move forward with your experience. If you are experienced in the Insurance industry, seek businesses that offer virtual positions. Finding a job in today’s economy is not easy especially if you really don’t want to work.

I believe the jobs are out there for those that want to work.

Beware of the scammers! If you think something is to good to be true..it usually is.

Check out this site that lists the companies that are legit:

http://www.jodisjourney.net/2008/09/legitimate-work-home-companies.html

If you need help deciding how to start your work at home adventure-check out Melissa’s book-“ Your Virtual Home Office Can Be a Reality!”

How can you reach out to new customers when you are not out in the workplace? Take time to build a website and let others know what type of business you are offering by word of mouth. Take the time to become a local member of your community with organizations such as Chamber of Commerce or sponsor a little league team. Working from your Virtual home office will provide unique challenges such as advertising but once you have all your ducks in a row, the opportunities are endless.

Recently the afternoon temperatures have been as high as 102 degrees and the hot weather shows no signs of letting up.   Summertime can be a time for extra leisure and spending time with the kids.   Summertime can be quite enjoyable, but yet you still have a job to do and must dig deep to find that extra motivation to keep on track.

Setting a strong work schedule will ensure that you can enjoy summer activities, while accomplishing the necessary tasks.   Posting that schedule for your spouse and children will allow them to respect your work time, while showing them that you still have together time for family.