Home vs. Home Office
Lay down the rules, and you'll alleviate some of the friction that arises when home is where the heart and the business are.
By Jeffery D. Zbar
| October 11, 2000
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Running a homebased Web and graphic design business-and raising
twin daughters with his wife, Mary-has become a unique balancing
act for Chris Agro. Consider the time a client dropped by at
Agro's Fort Lauderdale home office . . . at about the same time
Mary was returning home with a trunk-full of groceries. Or when
local clients begged Agro to bring some materials over . . . and
one of his two employees had to double as babysitter to Nicole and
Lindsay. In both instances, chaos could have ruled. But his daughters get
along well enough with his employees (one of whom is Agro's
mother) that no one resents the dual roles they sometimes play. And
his visiting client actually admired the family's balance, even
discussing family issues as he helped Mary bring in the groceries.
"It helped solidify my relationship with him," says Agro,
who has run Art by Chris Inc. Web and Graphic Design (www.artchris.com) from home since
1992. "I do more work with that client now than ever before.
Who says working from your house can't lead to more
business?" Not work-at-home parents who've mastered the art of
balancing home and home office. Years ago, before the advent of
technology services like voice mail, Caller ID, portable phones and
powerful PCs, working from home meant hiding family from clients.
Traditional corporate dwellers often resented the sound of kids
playing or crying in the background, and dismissed at-home workers
as parents first, part-time freelancers second. Content Continues Below
Today, technology helps homebased workers better control their
schedules, businesses and lives. But working from home amid kids
and spouses is still a deft balancing act, says Lisa Roberts,
founder of the Entrepreneurial Parent LLC, a Fairfield,
Connecticut-based resource for parents in the SOHO work force. One
of the most important skills is realizing when you can't do it
alone. Work-at-home parents need to garner the participation of
spouses, secure help with young children (child care, preschool,
grandparents or au pairs) and juggle their schedules to ensure
they're productive, Roberts says. Roberts should know. She had a 4-year-old daughter who answered
the business phone and gave it to Roberts while she was in the
shower, and a son who once lost his cool while traveling with her
to three client meetings in one morning. "Trying to do focused work around young children is
frustrating, draining and, frankly, a waste of precious time,"
says Roberts, who holds family "business" meetings that
let all involved know her needs for the upcoming week.
"Setting up a clear-cut weekly schedule that clients,
children, a spouse and you can count on is key to leading a
responsible work/family balance. I've found an occasional
family discussion on what's working and what's not-whether
the topic's the home office, the playroom or the kitchen-can
keep us all on track and in check."
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