Ask The Expert: Launching Your Online Home Based Business

Thanks for those kind words, Felicia.

One of the things I learned in the many years I’ve had a business, is that running a business is hard… but it’s a whole lot easier if you have someone you can question about challenges you are facing or bounce ideas off.  Over the years, I’ve gotten help by asking experts questions, and I’m looking forward to giving back by answering your questions now. 

While there was a time years ago when people didn't want to say their businesses were homebased, things have changed. Running a business from home is one of the most popular ways of starting a business. In fact,  Homebased business, make up about half of all small businesses according to the SBA Office of Advocacy.

Working virtually sounds like a great way to work, but there are some limitations, and if you've always worked in an office, working virtually may not be appealing at first.

One thing I’ve always noticed, is that when I don’t work away from the house, I work many more hours a day – just because the computer and the office phone are there.  So, you have to learn to shut the real or virtual door to your office to maintain a decent work/life balance.

Then there are the interruptions. The house phone rings when you're on a business call, or a neighbor or delivery person rings the bell.  

Another issue is something a lot of us got used to in the last year – isolation.  When you work virtually and have virtual employees or work with freelancers, you don’t have the same kind of personal interaction you have in an office setting where you walk in and say “Good morning” to your employees (or fellow coworkers if you’re an employee) or admire the new photos of their new grandchildren or son or daughter they have framed on their desk.  And you don’t’ have the enjoyable breaks in routine like someone bringing in some empanadas they made over the weekend for everyone to try, or another person sharing their recipe for Irish soda bread.

Zoom or Microsoft Teams, or Google Meet can help make some interactions a little more personal, and better yet, now that many places are starting to do in-person networking, getting out and talking to other business people is a big help with isolation.

Calling up a business friends and running problems or questions by them can help, too, or make an appointment to go out to lunch, or bring lunch to the park to chat, if you don’t want to eat indoors yet.

The other thing that can be difficult virtually, is communications. It’s easy for someone to misunderstand what you mean, or read things that aren’t there into a message when they aren’t there to see what you look like or hear the tone of your voice when you make a statement.

The solution to those types of problems is to remind people that if they have any question about what you say or mean, they should pick up the phone and call to ask.  And that they should be afraid to disagree with something you’ve say. There have been a lot of times when I’ve said I wanted something done a certain way, and a freelancer would tell me they didn’t think that’s the best way to do it, and then would suggest a better approach.

Finally, I think you need to be respectful of the time of any virtual employees or freelancers you work with. You may be working at 10 PM and shoot off an email to a team member about something important you want done. But let them know that it’s a task they should do during their regular working hours – not something that needs to be done at that late hour.

All in all, though, the benefits of working virtually outweigh the inconveniences in most cases.  Besides any cost and time savings, being able to let others work virtually for you means you you are not limited to hiring just the people who live close enough to commute to your place of business.  

@JanetAttard1 that's a great question...what is holding people back?  Is it money, time, need a business idea?  We'd love to hear from you.  

@JanetAttard1 what are some of the common reasons people are hesitant to start and beyond the idea what would help people get there?