Most people would KILL for the opportunity to work from home. Not only do you avoid the commute, but you have a say in the decorating process! If you’ve spent any amount of time in corporate America then you know how every office interior tends to look the same. By designing your own office space you can choose everything from the type of office chair you have to the wall decor, rugs and lighting! You’d be surprised at just how much one’s work environment can affect productivity and quality of work. It’s also infinitely easier to “go green” if you are designing your own space. Here are some eco-friendly suggestions for creating a greener home office!

Read the full article on eco-friendly home office design here.

One of the most important points to consider when planning a home office is privacy. When your business and your family share the same roof, it is vital to keep your home life from interfering with your business and vice-versa. This is why the basement is so often considered the best place in the house for a home office. It is private and at the same time part of the house

With the right planning and products, your basement can converted into the perfect home office. This article will give you a step by step guide on how to convert a basement into your place of business.

Read the full article on basement home offices here.

We are all seeking ways to reduce costs to help weather the current economic storm. This is particularly true for those of us in business for ourselves. One of the simplest ways to reduce significant overhead costs from many small business owners is to work from home. There are ample dollar-related reasons to work from home; working from home eliminates rent or mortgage payments on a separate office, eliminates commuting costs, and reduces electrical, water utility, and internet fees. In addition, working from home recovers time lost to commuting, avoids office politics and distractions, and can allow for a more flexible work schedule. However, the idea of working from home makes many business people worried about how it will affect the balance between their professional and personal lives. They also worry about the professional image it portrays, their ability to avoid distractions and resist the temptation to stay in pajamas all day, and the amount of space that the home office will occupy in the house.

One simple way to mitigate these concerns is to set up your home office outside of your home in a separate outbuilding. By moving the home office just outside, and detached from the home, you can create a perfect setting that requires you to get dressed before leaving the house, keeps work (and that always nagging email) out of your personal space, and distances you from distractions found within the home. It also provides a professional setting for meeting clients and to have phone conversations without distractions in the background.

You can read the full article here.

Ms. Peck is a Historic Preservation Consultant with over 12 years experience working with historic Florida homes. She is President of Preservation Resource, Inc., which has recently introduced a specialized product line for historic homes at www.HistoricShed.com.

As you may or may not know my actual business that I run from home has to do with affiliate marketing. If you’ve never heard of affiliate marketing that’s ok. Basically I sell stuff on behalf of other companies through websites that I build and promote. I never handle any products – I just “arrange” the sale and get paid a commission for that. The commission is between say 5% and 10% per sale.

A really, really critical part of running an online business is having great web hosting. Why? Because folks if your web host is offline your websites are offline and you’re not making money. It’s a very simple equation but something that people overlook all the time when they’re setting up their first website.

What most people want is the cheapest web hosting possible. Mistake! With web hosting if you pay peanuts you get monkeys – a cheap web host will normally cause you more problems and cost you more money than you ever could have imagined. Trust me there’s nothing more frustrating than looking for technical support that just doesn’t exist. Tick tock – every hour of downtime is costing you money. Bad mojo!

So who do I use? Well I have a few web hosts that I use but the one that consistently keeps me smiling in terms of features, support and uptime (the opposite of downtime and a hugely important shopping factor!) is Hostgator.

Hostgator have served me very well over the last several years and are currently top of my lists of web hosts that I use (and I have several web hosting accounts).

So what do I like about Hostgator?

Fast hosting

Great set of features
(including the Fantastico package of applications.)

Very well priced

Everything from beginner hosting to dedicated servers.

Great support

Very little downtime

So if you’re looking for a great, easy-to-use and reliable webhost then I can put my hand on my heart here and recommend Hostgator!

The current global recession is seen as a sign of doom and gloom by far too many people.

Yes a recession is generally bad news for the economy of any country. That being said if you look at any recession in history one things seems consistent – after any recession comes a great amount of prosperity. Vast in some cases. At the end of this recession you’ll see a new generation of millionaires and billionaires. That’s just how it goes. Swings and roundabouts so to speak. An economy can’t stay in a permanent nosedive – it will eventually improve.

So what does this mean if you want to start your own business? Be prepared mentally and financially. Don’t take silly risks and don’t take chances with your finances. Be practical about the fact that a recession makes starting a business that bit tougher.

The good news is that any business that can thrive during a recession will also thrive during booming economics. You’ll also notice that the world doesn’t stop turning during a recession. Business continues on. Another way of looking at it is this – a recession will “kill off” all the businesses that weren’t in good shape in the first place. Financially “unhealthy” businesses and banks will go under – the only thing keeping them afloat was an overinflated global economy.

I’ll leave you with the words of wisdom a friend gave me when I doubted working for myself. He said “What’s the worst that can happen if it doesn’t all work out? That’s right you’ll just have to get a job again. No big deal”.

It’s a refreshing way of looking at fear no?