Your Office is Born

You can make the perfect office. The first question you’ll want to ask yourself is, “Do I want to rent office space or work from my home?” If you’re the kind of person who likes to get up, go to the office and come home at the end of the day, then renting office space might be right for you. Of course, office space isn’t cheap. And you really don’t need that kind of expense to operate a very successful tax preparation business.

If it sounds like I’m in favor of the “Home Office,” you’re right. I am. Let me give you an example of why.

Victoria Richardson is a very successful accountant and graduate of Universal Accounting Center’s Professional Bookkeeper Course. In an interview with Allen Bostrom, President of Universal, she talked about her experience with both rented office space and a home office.

Victoria said, “I felt like it boosted my credibility to have a really nice, fancy, classy office. And so I had gone out and rented office space in a beautiful office setting, and what I found after being there a year was the only people that found me there were the people trying to sell me things.”

“I never, ever, ever had a client come in.” So she decided to get rid of the fancy, classy office and move her business into her house. She goes on to say, “I still have a gorgeous office. And it’s a place that I enjoy working. But with that, I work on Mondays, and I work on Tuesdays, and I work part of the day on Wednesdays, and I’m off Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and spend time with my kids…”

Click Here to Listen to the Audio of Victoria’s Complete Interview With Allen

Do I Like the Home Office? Yes I Do

There are a couple of things you need to consider as you set up your office. Rosalind Resnick, on Entrepreneur.com offers four things you need to make certain that you have in your home office to provide some basic functionality:

1. A clean, well-lighted place for the owner to run the business free from noise and distractions.
2. A place to sit down and work. (Desk, Chair, Lamp)
3. A place to store information about your customers. (Computer, Filing Cabinet, Electronic Organizer or Database)
4. A way to communicate with your customers quickly and efficiently. (Phone, Fax Machine/Software, Internet Connection)

She goes on to say, “Since most homebased businesses are service businesses, …it’s rarely necessary for a home office to be large enough to store inventory or component parts. And since most homebased business owners travel to their clients offices for meetings, you probably won’t need a conference room, white board or a projector.”

In an article published by Business Hotline Publications LTD in London, they ask some questions that will help you decide if a home office is right for you.

Will it provide the right working environment?

• Take yourself seriously. Even if you only work a few hours a week, remember you are running a business.
• Establish a workspace. It will be easier to concentrate on work once you enter the workspace and switch off when you leave.
• Separate “at work” from “home”. Discourage social phone calls and domestic interruptions during your working day.
• Arrange work patterns to fit in with the family and set working hours during which you will not be disturbed. Outside working hours, give family and friends your full attention.

Will working from home provide the right image?

• Do you expect visitors to come to your office? What will they think?
• Could you arrange to visit their premises or hire a meeting room instead?
• Will your address be suitable? Should you use a mailing address?
• Business centers often offer a “virtual office” facility, receiving post [mail], telephone calls and faxes on your behalf and then forwarding them to you.

What are the financial implications?

• An appropriate proportion of the bills (eg electricity) can be treated as business expenses and offset against tax. [These are tax issues that you will be addressing as you determine what type of business entity you create.]
• [You will more than likely need] to tell your insurers that you work from your home. (And change the insurance on your car, if you use it for business.) Otherwise, your insurance may become invalid. [These are tax issues that you will want to investigate as you determine they type of business entity you will become.]

This list is not all inclusive, but only meant as a guideline to help you determine if a home office is right for you. That said… I still like the home office.

I Know What I Want My Office to Be, What Else Do I Need?

Much of what you’re going to need you might already have, in fact, Chris Pentilla of Entrepreneur magazine, cautions us against spending too much in setting up an office. “It’s easy to spend too much. To cut costs, look for office surplus stores and be aware of local business closings. Another tip: Did you know that state government sell surplus office equipment at bargain prices? You just have to know where to shop. To get started, check out the National Association of State Agencies for Surplus Property (NASASP) online at www.nasap.com, which sells federal government surplus items, including office equipment and supplies.”

For a list of some of the foundation office furniture and supplies you’ll need, click on the link below and download a Microsoft Word document of what you’ll need to create your workspace.

The Foundation of Any Office: The Furniture and Supplies You’ll Need

How Do I Communicate With My Clients?

You’ll need to establish a connection to the outside world. Chris Pentilla adds, “Do you want to rely on a cell phone instead of a land line, or use both? When it comes to the Net, there’s DSL, cable modems, dial-ups and T1’s. Rates vary, so you’ll have to shop around with providers’ sites, such as Covad.com. The key is not to buy too much, too soon. “Don’t sign a three-year contract. Only sign for a year at most,” says Tom Heslin, president of Sunsar Communications, a telecommunications agency in Trumbull, Connecticut. Besides cruising the sites of your local Baby Bell and long-distance providers, try sites like GetConnected.com, where you can find links to a bill calculator, a long-distance glossary and tips for setting up a calling plan.”

With cell phones as an inexpensive and commonplace as they are today, many businesses rely on cellular technology to handle all of their business needs. Even if when you’re not “in your home office” you can appear to be with your cell phone.

In fact, even though I work in an office, the only phone I have on my desk is my cell phone. I don’t take enough calls to need a phone. In fact, I do 100% of my business communication via either instant messaging or e-mail. I realize that my situation is different from most, but don’t be too quick to buy a lot of expensive communication equipment that you might not need.

“Pleasure In the Job Puts Perfection In The Work”
-Aristotle

Believe it or not, your work environment will not only affect your ability to work, but the quality of your life. If you can make your working environment a pleasurable place to be, you will be able to create the kind of lifestyle that you and your family deserve.

You can learn more about the profitable and rewarding professional tax preparation business and discover if it’s right for you. Simply click on the following link. There’s never been a better time than right now.

Click Here and Find Out How a Professional Tax Preparation Business Will Create a Better Lifestyle for Me and My Family

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