I use the term “remote office” here rather loosely, as it is more about working remotely than from an office. This week (as you may tell from my late-night posts) I’ve found myself working from a theatre, getting my “office” work done there during the day (and repeating the same when I get home) as I have a new production opening tonight for the remainder of the week.

In working remotely, there are a few things I need in order to function.

1. Laptop with mobile broadband
   I can’t rely on a client premises or a remote location to have a network I can plug into or a wifi connection in the building so having the mobile broadband option (via Telefonica O2) allows me connect to the home and office server to pull out much-needed project files
2. Mobile phone
   A given really as it never leaves my pocket. I do, however, carry a second handset in the possibility that my primary handset might run out of juice. Especially if I forget point number three.
3. Mobile phone charger
   Vital ingredient, especially if you don’t have a second handset. I got caught out last week and wound up missing some important text messages and a particular call but I’ve had my charger with me all week.
4. Headphones
   I use Skype the odd bit during the week for connecting back to the office, joining a podcast call or sitting in on a video call. Not wanting those around me to hear what’s going on, I make sure to have a set of in-ear headphones handy in my bag.
5. A trailing socket / extension lead
   If you can fit one in your bag, I tend to have a gangway with me (4-way adapter). Sometimes power points can be a bit tricky, or limited. I might have the laptop plugged in, would need to charge the phone, maybe power a video camera - having easy access to power points in the one location is a great help, so I’ll usually have a 4-way in the van.
6. Pens & Paper
   An A4 spiral refill pad and 2-3 biros and I’m set. It saves you scrambling for bits of paper or using envelopes to get your ideas down.

If you’re unsure about the working and eating setup, you could also go the extra step and add some toilet paper / tissues / cup-o-soup packets to your bag of tricks, as I have often done in the past.

The great thing is that all the above fit into the one bag. Remembering to leave the house with everything is the trick though. Have you anything of vital importance you must bring with you when working remotely?

Stock photo from here.

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The majority of those I know working freelance choose to work from the home.

It saves on commercial rent, saves on parking fees, can save you from the distraction of ducking to the nearby pub or restaurant at lunchtime as you “just happen to be” in town. You can also write portions of your home electricity, rent, telephone charges etc. off against tax.

However, there’s more to a home office than just the kitchen table. I had mentioned last week about technology in the home of a freelancer, but are there certain things to watch out for when setting up a home office?

I had a discussion with a freelance journalist recently who was considering converting a spare bedroom in the house to a working office, something I’ve semi-attempted. I say “semi-attempted” as I wanted to have that professional feel, but didn’t want to have that stuffy, office-like feel either.

Powerhomebiz.com has seven simple rules for setting up a home office.

1. Establish your home office in a part of the house that has lots of light and air
   In choosing to convert a bedroom myself, I have two desks at opposite ends of a room with a large window in between. Plenty of natural light during the day and two small window panes that can be opened out be each desk. I don’t go for overhead lighting, preferring localised desk lighting and a standing lamp in the corner of the room, much nicer when working late at night.
2. Set-up shop away from the busy areas in your home
   With the possibility of people dropping in or the door bell ringing, I’m away from the busy areas in the house. No distractions in the kitchen, no distractions in the sitting room or from the TV and if the door rings, at least I have to get up out of the room and down a flight of stairs to get to it. The movement helps!
3. Organise your supplies
   This is something I do at regular intervals during the year. Online suppliers like Viking Direct will ship large boxes of pens, paper, refill pads, post-its, CDRs - whatever you need. Keep your regularly used office supplies to hand and tidy away everything else. With next-day delivery from most office supply companies you need not worry about getting caught short on supplies. I tend to buy own-brand pens, paper - they do the same job and keep my wallet happy.
4. Set up things so they function smoothly
   This relates to maximising your office space. Avoid clutter on the floor, avoid those piles of books, avoid moving one pile of papers off the desk to the floor - get a press for yourself or a filing cabinet. A clean desk for me is a must, the clear space around my immediate working area can have such a calming effect at times, try it for yourself!
5. Limit the things in your home office to items that you need for your business
   There is a temptation, I feel, to add a lot of “officey” things to your office. Some people I know have gone down the mini-fridge route, added a kettle, (when they already have a kitchen in the house) a mini TV, new stereo, a five-door filing cabinet instead of a 3-door… As their own post says “It is difficult to work in a place filled with stuffs irrelevant to your business”.
6. A home office does not need to be a separate room
   If you’re lacking on space, you can choose to establish your working area in the corner of another room. I’ve chosen to convert part of a room, lucky enough to have the space to set up clear working areas, but in converting a bedroom I chose to leave the bed there (it’s nice to be able to offer a visitor a place to sleep!) However, I’m comfortable knowing I have more than enough room to work in. Keeping the distractions to a minimum if working in other rooms is key.
7. Have a dedicated work area
   It goes without saying and should really be point number one. When the weekend hits, I tend to ramble around the house (wifi is a great thing). I could be blogging in the kitchen, emailing in the garden, browsing in the sitting room, but when it comes to work, I will return to my desk and get myself in “work mode”. While you don’t have to have a separate room in order to work, having a dedicated work area will add to that sense of purpose, increase your focus and productivity.

You can see the full post here.

If Feng Shui is your thing, then you might want to check this quick guide on eHow.com on using Feng Shui to set up your home office. I also have a post this year on “Are you using the right chair?”

Have you had any success or horror stories with your home office? Any photos you would like to share? Leave a comment or drop me an email.

Popularity: 8% [?]

So often when it comes to web projects we look at a start date, set a time line and follow the time line. But what if we have no start date? At least, what if we have no definite start date and how can you determine one?

Easy.

Set the launch date. Don’t move it. Work backwards.

In a discussion with a potential new client group this afternoon I was asked about development timelines for the proposed project from start to finish. After outlining the design and development phase of the project I asked the group how they were doing with their content gathering for the site, if they had material for me to work with initially.

In short, the answer was no. They wanted to do the job right and take the time to get the right content, but on the other hand they didn’t want to waste any time hanging around.

“No problem”, I said, “when would you like to launch it?”

As it turns out they have an event coming up later in the year that would be ideal for the launch so we’ve agreed the end and launch date of the project. This allowed us to set deadlines for certain content elements, testing dates and ultimately assess a loose starting point allowing them a comfort zone in which to organise their team looking after the new web development and arrange their financing (rather than put them under pressure).

When they could see the finish line ahead, the whole project seemed to take on a new level of excitement. Again, the simple things are often the most effective when starting on a new job.

Popularity: 8% [?]

If you were to ask Wikipedia what the term ‘brainstorming’ meant, it would tell you that “Brainstorming is a group creativity technique designed to generate a large number of ideas for the solution to a problem.”

Generating a large number of ideas can often take up a large amount of space. Some people go for whiteboards, flip charts, large mindmaps, post-its on a wall. Me? I go for envelopes, your standard letter (1/3 A4) size in white.

It is a small quirk, but I’ve launched one or two blogs off the back of planning on an envelope or solved entire project problems by working off an envelope.

It happened by accident the first time. I had been standing in the bank, queuing to make some lodgements when an idea hit me. I had my lodgement book, a pen, and an envelope containing a statement. With the envelope being the only viable thing to write on, off I went from top to bottom and fit everything on it - the initial problem, all the workable options and the final solution as everything flowed into space.

The first time was maybe a year ago. Now when I look at my desk I’ve got a neat stack of envelopes with a massive amount of information and ideas on them. I had actually turned around on the phone last week asking my business partner for an envelope so I could jot down ideas flowing into my head off the back of the call I was taking.

Why an envelope?

I think it’s a space issue. A letter envelope isn’t bulky, folds neat into your pocket and I also happen to have a massive carton of unused ones so maybe there’s a paper-saving plan in place. Everything fits into a much more manageable space that’s highly portable and when compacted (in comparison to using a large whiteboard or post-its) feels much more approachable. There is an element that you’re restricting the space you’re working in, so you’ve got to be a bit more thought out before the pen hits the paper.

Other people go the notebook route, a refill pad, maybe a trendy moleskine, but I choose envelopes.

Have you any quirks when it comes to brainstorming or getting an idea on paper? Beer mats? Loo roll?

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