Today's Business Woman 2/08

Your ofﬁ ce
half to say you are in a meeting if you cannot heating and lighting, against your tax liability. standards, and be prepared to expand as
take a call – whatever you are actually doing. However, this can be a complex area, and the business grows.
Don’t let your children answer the phone you should seek the advice of an accountant
during working hours, or better still, get a to clarify your position.
separate dedicated business line with an 10
Don’t be a victim of your
own success
answering machine that can take over at the While some businesses can be run
end of the day. 8
C

lient meetings
If you have a client coming for a comfortably from home for many years,
meeting, make sure you consider the others become victims of their own success,
6
S

et boundaries for friends, access to your ofﬁ ce. Are corridors tidy? Is requiring more space for storing growing
family and clients the garden neat? Will they be distracted by volumes of stock, meeting clients, and
One of the biggest challenges of working clutter? Do you have the option of a separate accommodating a burgeoning workforce.
from home is teaching your family to door for them to enter by? Your home is a To solve this problem you could convert an
recognise the line between home and work. showcase for your business and you should outbuilding such as a garage or shed, or
Make sure they respect your working hours think about everything they will see en route consider a Swedish-style log cabin in the
and teach young children not to burst in and to your ofﬁ ce. garden, kitted out with ofﬁ ce paraphernalia
interrupt. (www.homelodge.co.uk). If neither of these
7
Know your rights and tax 9
W

ork as a franchisee are possible for you, and your business
Many franchising opportunities offer is starting to spread around the house,
liability the chance to use your home as a base, make sure you seek out a new commercial
In setting up a home-based business, often they only require basic equipment and premises. It will allow you to take the
there may be some scope for offsetting a allow you to have ﬂ exible working hours. But company to the next level, and is more
proportion of the running costs, including make sure that you maintain professional respectful to those sharing your house. © 123rf.com; istockphoto.com/ Bob Randall
34 TODAY’S BUSINESS WOMAN
T'sBW8 Home-working.indd 34 1/12/08 5:49:43 pm
Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 | Page 7 | Page 8 | Page 9 | Page 10 | Page 11 | Page 12 | Page 13 | Page 14 | Page 15 | Page 16 | Page 17 | Page 18 | Page 19 | Page 20 | Page 21 | Page 22 | Page 23 | Page 24 | Page 25 | Page 26 | Page 27 | Page 28 | Page 29 | Page 30 | Page 31 | Page 32 | Page 33 | Page 34 | Page 35 | Page 36 | Page 37 | Page 38 | Page 39 | Page 40 | Page 41 | Page 42 | Page 43 | Page 44 | Page 45 | Page 46 | Page 47 | Page 48 | Page 49 | Page 50 | Page 51 | Page 52 | Page 53 | Page 54 | Page 55 | Page 56 | Page 57 | Page 58 | Page 59 | Page 60 | Page 61 | Page 62 | Page 63 | Page 64 | Page 65 | Page 66 | Page 67 | Page 68 | Page 69 | Page 70 | Page 71 | Page 72 | Page 73 | Page 74 | Page 75 | Page 76 | Page 77 | Page 78 | Page 79 | Page 80 | Page 81 | Page 82 | Page 83 | Page 84 | Page 85 | Page 86 | Page 87 | Page 88 | Page 89 | Page 90 | Page 91 | Page 92 | Page 93 | Page 94 | Page 95 | Page 96 | Page 97 | Page 98