Many electrical companies work from home and it’s completely normal. You’ll need to find a space to work that should be close to the entrance for your customers and for you in case of transporting large items. It’s very important to have a designated working space in order to have a normal work life balance. When setting up an office at home consider these: family, neighbours and customers.

Family

If you’re a one man band you’ll need to accomplish many tasks related with business. This means that you’re going to work not only Monday to Friday but also late evenings and weekends. Unfortunately, your family suffers when you work so much. They want you to succeed but they also want to see you. Here are few suggestions how to spend more time with your family:

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• set up strict working hours and stop working on time (you can even set an alarm clock to remember when work time finishes and family time begins)
• create a calendar for important family events e.g. children concerts, meetings, anniversaries etc. and plan your work schedule around it
• consider your partner by having days off, surprising them and getting a babysitter from time to time

Balancing work and family isn’t easy but it’s definitely possible and can become a habit that will bring loads of happiness.

Neighbours

Before you start working from home you should obtain a permit from the local council. Usually, it’s not a problem if you’re going into a light industry. Repairing electrical tools shouldn’t be too loud but a general traffic of clients and delivery vans can disturb your neighbours. I am sure you don’t want to upset your neighbours and end up having problems working from home. Possible solutions are:

• collect deliveries yourself or buy materials in a shop
• go to your customers’ home instead of them coming to your home-based office (when possible)
• offer a few hours of free service to your neighbours every now and then

By keeping your neighbours happy you’ll be able to run a successful business from home and won’t have to deal with their complaints.

Customers

Letting customers visit your home-based business can affect your relationship with your family and neighbours. You don’t want to have customer cars parked in the neighbourhood or let them enter your family’s private space. A few ways to solve these problems are:

• offer house calls (visit your customer’s home)
• set up office hours when visitors can come to your house
• have a waiting room

Letting unknown people into your house affects your safety and security, so make sure to get home insurance and a separate working area from the family house if possible. Do it in a way that your customers would still feel welcomed and properly treated.

Setting up guidelines for a home-based electrical business regarding family, neighbours and customers are crucial. Interruption of your family and neighbours life and privacy can lead to disaster. Follow these tips and I am sure you’ll be fine!