Working at Home on the Internet

WAH Tip #5 Often Overlooked Considerations in Home Business

 More and more people are looking to work at home. Whether it’s to spend more time with the family, the need for independence or just growing tired of the commute, a large number of people are starting home businesses.

Since the vast majority of Home Businesses are run by one or two people. There are some things you should know if you intend to run a Business from Home.

1. Should I Incorporate?

Consider this. If you run any business from home as a sole proprietorship, you and the business are one entity. If someone sues the business, they sue you and can put a lien on your personal property. You run the risk of losing your house and everything in it.

You are better off if you incorporate the business in some manner (the most common is an S corporation), or form a Limited Liability Company (LLC). Either way will put a “Corporate Shield” between you and your company. The business liabilities will be kept separate from the personal.

2. Zoning Codes

Something else you should consider is Zoning Codes. All municipalities, townships, and small towns have some type of ordinance covering residential and commercial properties.

Most will allow home businesses with certain restrictions. Some you may or may not be allowed to have a sign. Others may allow only a certain number of vehicles to a property, or it may be considered commercial.

Be sure to check with your local zoning authority to find out what is considered commercial in your area.

3. Insurance

Does your homeowners insurance cover your business if something happens? Some do, some don’t, be sure to check with your insurance agent. In most cases it is better to get a separate policy specifically for the business.

 You may need some type of Liability Insurance for your particular business. Are you and your employees covered by Health and Accidental Injury Insurance?

4. Tax Deductions

There are certain deductions you can take for running your business from home. Now is the time to think of which deductions you may be able to take for your home office. You have to meet at least 3 criteria.

a. The area for your business must be exclusively for that purpose. You can’t just set up on the dining room table.

b. You must use the area on a consistent basis, not just once in a while to send bills to customers.

c. You must be able to show that your “office” is your principal place of business, or you meet customers there, or you have a separate structure for business purposes.

You needn’t prove all three, but be able to show proof if you are audited.

When you start a Home Business, be sure to consider this list. They are some of the easiest things to overlook when Working at Home.

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August 13th, 2007 at 10:41am | Posted by Joe | Tips, Work at Home | 3 reader remarks | Print This Post

7 Necessary Steps When Launching a New Blog

Did you know it is a lot of work to launch a Blog? Of course you did, and so did I. But I almost forgot How Much Work it really is to set things up the way I want them.

Why am I telling you this? Because FINALLY after two years of waiting and trying to secure the URL I have wanted is now Mine, all mine… mcbsconsulting.com will be the Main Site for My Computer Back in Service. That, if you don’t already know, is my actual business. Helping people when they are having problems with their computer, Website or Blog. But I won’t bore you with that right now, I’ll bore you with some of the steps I will be taking this time around.

• The easy part is done, I installed WP 2.2.1. This was never a question as I have found WordPress to be the best platform for my Bogging.
• Picking a Theme is not quite as easy. The first one I tried would not render anywhere close to Internet Explorer using FireFox. The next choice was a little better, but no final decision yet.
• Then there is the matter of Plugins. Luckily, I have tested quite a few and have a good idea of what I want to do with the presentation and usage features they provide.
• Meta Data is something I really have to work on. The Blog Info and Tag line are set, but Keywords are important to get right in the beginning. Content will help with that later, but I want to get a head start with SEO (Search Engine Optimization).
• Setting the Options the right way now will help later. I set the Permalink structure without the date, just the Title/post will show for entries. I always wanted to do that here, but it would cause problems with ALL the links, internal and external.
• Another important thing to do is to register with all of the pinging services and sites like Technorati and FeedBurner. I still have to set up with Google for a Sitemap and get the code for StatCounter.
• I also want to have some posts written and ready to go Before the launch. That way, I should have a head start on posting and it should be easier to maintain a consistant schedule.

Even with the experience of Blogging and being part of such a great community, it is still a lot of work to get a Blog off the ground. I have no doubt that I have left things out but this little list will keep me busy for quite a while. Not to worry, I will let you know when I Do launch My Computer Back in Service.

Let me know if you come up with any suggestions for missing steps in comments, Please.

August 8th, 2007 at 11:24am | Posted by Joe | Basics, Blogging, Management, Organization, Resources, Tips | 4 reader remarks | Print This Post

WAH Tip #4 The Learning Curve

This is a reprise of a post I had written back in January of this year. I felt that it would be a really nice fit with the Work at Home Tips series. So, instead of letting it languish in the oblivion of the past, I thought I should (hopefully) bring it back to life. Don’t worry, if you read it before, it should be worth your time as a reminder of what we all go through as Work at Homers.

We all go through it.

When we first start working at home, we feel free. So much so that we sometimes almost forget that we ARE Working. But, we have to remember, this is how we make a living.

Neighbors come calling

Neighbors know that you are home. You work at home. They have the day off, or may even be retired, so they might just stop by or call on the phone. They have the time, with nothing to do and since you are home all the time, they may think that it’s Ok to knock on the door or call you to “shoot the bull”. They probably don’t think you could possibly be too busy to talk, you work at home.

The Learning Curve

You have to learn to tell them that you are working. Let them know in a friendly way that you need to get your work done, get back to the office, were on the computer, or are in the middle of something important. These are not excuses, they hopefully are the truth. The neighbors aren’t going to pay your bills, you are. You have to remember, this is how you make a living.

Friends want a Freebee

If your friends know what your expertise is and they have a need for a service that you provide, they might ask for a “little” favor. They will probably not take into consideration that this is how you make your money. You work at home, therefore you have the time to do this “little” thing for them since you don’t have a real job. And since it’s such a small favor, they won’t expect you to charge them. And Don’t expect them to offer to pay.

The Learning Curve 

Everybody wants something for nothing. If a friend or neighbor needs your service, go ahead and do the first and/or second thing gratis. But, you need to let them know there will be a charge for subsequent services. Tell them that it is customary to charge X amount of money for this particular service. Let them know… This how you make your living.

Family matters

Sis, Mom or Pop calls and wants you to stop by during business hours to talk about what color to paint the living room (You are not a painter) or they ran out of milk, so they want you to get it for them for their morning coffee. It is like they think you don’t have a real job, so you have the time to spend doing menial things for the family. Everyone else works in an office or a shop and works regular hours. You work at home. So you are the one they call any time of the day, especially during business hours, because everyone else is “busy”.

The Learning Curve

Family is probably the most difficult to deal with when you Work at Home. They don’t believe that you have a real job. They think you have all the time in the world. It’s family, so you feel guilty if you don’t do what they expect. The family thinks since you work at home, you can break away at a moments notice and you probably can for the Important things. But you have to draw a line, even with them, that when you are working, you are Working. Let them know… This is how you make a living.

Moral

When you have any Business Working at Home, it is your Job. If you worked for someone else, you most likely wouldn’t be able to take the time off to do some of the things people ask of you. There would be no time off for doing favors, and there would definitely be no Freebies. Treat your Home Business the same as you would working for a big company. When you are at work, you are working.

Just remember… This is how you make your living.

I hope you agree that this really should be included in the Work at Home Tips series. I didn’t want to just write a small post and link to the original. Especially since there seems to be quite a few more new members of the community than there were 8 months ago. J.

Technorati Tags: Working at Home, Home Business, Learning Curve, Time Management

August 6th, 2007 at 05:59am | Posted by Joe | Tips, Work at Home | reader remarks | Print This Post