Five Things Not to do If You Have a Work at Home Business
A Home Business Article Contributed by Marsha Maung
Five Things Not to do If You Have a Work at Home Business
Many people can tell you lots of things if you plan to work from home. They can give you lots of ideas, business tips, resources and advice from how to run your home business but working from home is not as easy as it is made out to be. So, here are 5 things you SHOULDN'T do if you run a business from home.
Children is Not Part of Work and Not Part of Your Home Business
If you've given up a top position, high paying job in order to start a home based business so that you can work from home and be with your kids at the same time, you're not alone. In fact, it's a known fact that many executives and people holding managerial posts are giving up their high flying jobs in stressful work environments so that they can stay home and start a business to be with their kids.
But we should, sadly, keep our children out of our home business as much as possible. There should be a very clear line to be drawn between work and home. Work is work. Business is Business. Home is home.
Unless they're old enough to understand the nature of your work and business, then draw a line between your home and your work. Only involve them in your work if they are old enough to take instructions from you, is responsible and can do simple tasks for you in order to make life easier for you.
No Tvs or Radios When You're Working on Your Home Business
The choice is yours, of course, but this rule applies to every kind of business especially when holding a conversation over the phone. It sounds unprofessional if you have Linkin Park blaring through the microphone. Imagine how it would sound like on the other end if they're trying to get you to write a marketing research article for them? They're going to think very little about your professionalism in terms of work quality.
So, whenever you're on the phone, keep the TV and radio down.
Don't Get Personal with Your Clients
Clients are clients and you should remain as friendly as possible with them but this doesn't mean that you should get 'chummy' and take on the role of their best friends! As far as your home business is concerned, you should keep clear boundaries between the role of clients and your role as a home business owner.
Don't Take off from Your Business and Work Whenever You Can to Attend to Home Issues
This is one of the last things your clients would expect from you! Someone who is unreliable. As a home business owner, we have to realize what we're up against. In case you don't realize this, every home based business is up against at least hundreds of other giant corporations offering better customer service. So, we have to commit our time and effort into giving our clients as much of our time as we can possibly give them. This is an unwritten rule we should all abide by.
Don't Go to Meetings with Your Shorts and Sandals
I personally made this very same mistake myself. After taking the kids to the park, my client called me on my cell phone to request for a meeting. I wanted the job very much, so I said 'yes' and said I could be there in minutes! And I did, in my sandals and shorts.
To put it mildly, the client wasn't impressed with my attire...and he also wasn't impressed with my kids' singing. Needless to say, I didn't get the job and it doesn't take a genius to guess why.
