| No matter what field your new business is in, | | | | |
| you will need a home office. Perhaps you | | | | Connecting wirelessly also allows you to |
| already have one, provided by your former | | | | place devices in more than one room. The |
| employer. Or maybe you need to start from | | | | disadvantage of wireless networking is that |
| scratch. Either way, your office will be the | | | | it tends to be somewhat more expensive than |
| nexus of your new company, so plan the design | | | | wired connectivity. |
| carefully. | | | | |
| | | | You will also need a variety of office |
| There are many essentials that are basic to | | | | furnishings. A comfortable desk chair will |
| every home office. The computer is perhaps | | | | save your back. Rolling chairs are convenient |
| the most important. As the heart of your | | | | but certainly not required. Your desk will |
| business, the computer must be up to date and | | | | need to accommodate your monitor and other |
| reasonably powerful. | | | | devices, and storage space would be a |
| | | | convenience. General office supplies such as |
| It is not necessary to purchase the most | | | | pens and paper clips should be within easy |
| expensive, however you should make sure that | | | | reach when seated at your desk. |
| you can meet or exceed the system | | | | |
| requirements for the software you will | | | | A filing cabinet is highly recommended, to |
| purchase. No less than 512 MB of RAM, a | | | | organize both your business information and |
| Pentium or similar processor with a clock | | | | your client files. The filing cabinet should |
| speed of no lower than 2 GHz, and a 3D | | | | have a locking capability. For maximum |
| enabled graphics card should be considered | | | | security a heavy metal fireproof filing |
| minimum requirements. | | | | cabinet is the ideal, however these are |
| | | | expensive. A mid-range filing cabinet will |
| Another essential for the home office is a | | | | usually suffice at the beginning. |
| fax machine. Though e-mail is becoming more | | | | |
| and more common, many business situations | | | | A shredder is an often-overlooked but highly |
| still require the use of a fax. A very | | | | necessary component to a home office. |
| practical and cost effective solution is the | | | | Identity theft is rampant, and simply |
| all-in-one. Combining a fax machine, copier, | | | | shredding sensitive documents is an easy |
| scanner, and printer in one machine, these | | | | first line of defense. Remember to shred both |
| devices save both space and money over | | | | company documents and client files. |
| purchasing components separately. | | | | |
| | | | Your home office will be the heart of your |
| You will need a way for your electronic | | | | new business. Proper design is important. |
| devices to communicate with each other. Many | | | | Your new setup should be functional and |
| devices are now able to communicate | | | | ergonomic, as well as pleasing to your eye. A |
| wirelessly, from printers to keyboards and | | | | bit of planning and initial investment will |
| mice, allowing you maximum convenience in | | | | net you an office that will suit your needs |
| office layout. | | | | for years to come. |