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For many homebased business owners, vacations seem a distantmemory of life in the corporate world where you had people to coverfor you when you took a vacation. But when you're running asolo operation, getting away from the business long enough to relaxand rejuvenate can be a challenge.
Janie Williams, owner and president of Janie Williams andAssociates, a homebased bookkeeping and tax firm in Long Beach,California, offers these tips:
- Plan ahead. Schedule your vacation in advance so you canplan your workload around your time off.
- Build a backup network. Line up people you trust tohandle work that can't wait while you're gone.
- Notify your clients. About a week before you leave, tellyour clients you'll be unavailable. You may need to tell themsooner if it means rescheduling their work. "Most clients areunderstanding," says Williams. "They know you need to getaway, and they'll usually work with you."
- Take some of your work with you. Sometimes a changeof scenery is worthwhile even if you can't totally escapeyour business. Use faxes, portable computers and modems to keep upwhile you enjoy some time at a resort.
- Consider taking several short breaks instead of one longvacation. "I don't see how anyone who is [homebased]could take a month-long vacation," saysWilliams. But you cantake a Friday-through-Monday break without your clients even beingaware you were gone.
Whether you believe vacations are valuable or a waste of time,it's a good idea to structure your business so you can taketime off if necessary. Williams learned this lesson the hard waywhen she became ill and was unable to work at the end of the taxseason last year. "If something happens and you end upbedridden or in the hospital, who's going to take care of yourclients?" she asks. "Not just for vacations, but in caseof illness or other emergencies, you need a plan inplace."
Jacquelyn Lynn is a freelance business writer in Winter Park,Florida.
Chop, Chop
Just because you're homebased doesn't mean you canafford to be any less cautious about discarding documents. In fact,says Todd Henreckson, director of the Shredder Division at GeneralBinding Corp. (GBC), an office equipment manufacuring company inNorthbrook, Illinois, "The garbage generated by a homebasedbusiness is just as vulnerable [to fraud and information thieves]as any corporation's."
Although you may think your trash is relatively safe if it goesfrom your house to the curb to the dump, there are plenty ofopportunities for the information it contains to fall into thewrong hands. "The minute you put your garbage out at the curb,it's public domain and it's legal for someone to go throughit," Henreckson says. Also, trash bags can tear open, and ifyou've tossed out financial records, confidential clientinformation or other private documents, they could be spilled andavailable for anyone to see.
A simple and increasingly affordable solution is to shreddocuments before discarding them. The price of home officeshredders has been dropping steadily. According to GBC, in 1988, apersonal shredder cost approximately $250; in 1996, comparableequipment had dropped to about $30. The company estimates that in1998, the total number of shredders sold will reach 2.5million.
Today, basic home office shredders start at less than $25 for astyle that fits over your wastebasket and shreds documents intostrips. For extra security, you can opt for a machine that cutspaper into chips; these models are available for less than$100.
Uncalled For
A common complaint about telemarketers is that they always seemto call in the evening just as you're sitting down to dinner.For the homebased business owner, the problem is compounded becausethose calls tend to come during the day when you're trying tofocus on work. Your chance of getting called by telemarketersincreases proportionally with the amount of time you spend in yourhome office, says Stephen Urbish, president of Don't Annoy Me(DAM) Inc., in Columbus, New Jersey. This increase in calls is nocoincidence--telemarketing companies conduct extensive,sophisticated research, and they know who is likely to be at homeduring the day and who isn't.
"If you're working at home, telemarketing researchindicates that you have money, you can be reached during the day atyour residential line, and you probably have time to talk to atelemarketer, so you'll be targeted," says Urbish. Heknows this because he spent 10 years in the telemarketing industrybefore creating DAM, a service designed to reduce the number oftelemarketing calls to homes.
Of course, you can simply tell each caller to put you on their"do not call" list, and by law, they are required tocomply. Some states also have "do not call" registries(details can be found in your telephone directory), but they aretypically limited to telemarketers based in that state.
For a fee, DAM will notify each of the more than 1,500telemarketing companies across the country that are in theirdatabase that you do not wish to be called; they'll provide youwith documentation so you have recourse if the companies fail tocomply. Urbish says you can also reduce the number of telemarketingcalls you receive by being cautious about releasing personalinformation and by asking the companies you do business with torefrain from selling your personal data.
DAM's notification service is $19.95 for each residentialline (telemarketing laws do not apply to business lines). ForEntrepreneur's HomeOffice readers, Urbish is offering adiscounted rate of $5 for each additional residential line; call(800) 846-4715 or write to Don't Annoy Me Inc., P.O. Box442, Columbus, NJ 08022-0442.
Places To Go
Sometimes you need to host a meeting or make a presentation, andyour home office just isn't appropriate. In the Washington, DC,area, the Executive Office Club Inc. rents a range of officefacilities, including multimedia conference rooms, state-of-the-artcommunications and computer stations, on an as-needed, hourlybasis. "Homebased entrepreneurs have been screaming for aprofessional place to work when they need something outside thehome," says Executive Office Club's president, MarkWiatrowski.
Wiatrowski suggests that homebased business owners plan ahead tofind appropriate facilities. Some options are:
- Executive suites. Although most executive office suitesprefer long-term rentals, some offer daily or hourly rates.
- Small hotels. Unlike large hotel chains, small hotelsmay have affordable meeting facilities for small groups.
- Airline clubs. Call your nearest airport to find outabout airline club facilities. These clubs are especiallyconvenient if you're meeting with people who aretraveling.
Contact Sources
Executive Office Club Inc., (800) 784-2484, http://www.houroffice.com
GBC, (800) 541-0094, http://www.gbc.com
Janie Williams and Associates, (562) 430-8240, fax: (562)598-0315.
