Photo by boulter via Flickr Creative Commons.

Okay, I have to come clean.  I’m partial to the laptop. 

Two years ago, we purchased the laptop for my husband to use while he’s mobile.  That never really happened, so we’ve had two home computers, the desktop and the laptop.  I’ve remained fairly partial to my trusty desktop until it’s recent virus. 

I’ve used the laptop for a few weeks now.  Saturday, my two-year-old decided to see what would happen when his fruit drink was poured into the expensive “toy”.  The hard drive is fried.  So, until we locate the system setup disc, we’re back to the desktop.  And I am realizing how much I took advantage of the convenience of my laptop friend!  Here I sit, facing the wall, working…while my husband is watching television, and talking on the phone.  I feel like I’m in time out!  At one point during our solitary laptop use, I was working in the passenger seat of the car while my husband was driving! 

So, while my desktop remains my friend (my only one right now), I do see myself converting sometime in the near future.  It’s all about the convenience.  And I miss it!

Photo by Arbron via Flickr Creative Commons.

Photo by Mingo.nl via Flickr Creative Commons.

Photo by I Don’t Know, Maybe via Flickr Creative Commons.

I can’t help but think about how nice it must be to look out that window every morning.  Tough work!  Giada’s an incredible cook, and a very lucky one!  Can you believe I have a friend who watches her show daily, and has never noticed the background!  Sometimes I find it hard to focus on the show!  Great “work at home” environment! 

Photo couresy of Food Network

Photo by JAGwired via Flickr Creative Commons.

One of your work from home New Year’s resolutions might be to reduce your freelancing workload, or to find more time for other pursuits. This is important, since you don’t want to be stressed too much about what is happening in your home business, and have it encroach too much on the rest of your life. However, it is important to carefully consider your options before adjusting your freelancing workload. Here are some things to consider as you work on changing things up with your home business:

* Cost efficiency of clients. Consider renegotiating your fee with clients you have had for a long time, giving them a chance to pay what you are worth. Some clients, though, may not be cost efficient at all, and it is time to let them go.

* Stress level associated with clients. Sometimes your relationship with a client is more of a factor. If you don’t like the work, or if the client stresses you out, or you find the work difficult to deal with, it can be a good idea to cut ties with that client, and keep a less stressful client, even if s/he is less cost efficient.

* What you can handle. Consider your quality of life. If you can afford to cut back in order to spend more time with your family, or do something for yourself, it might be a good idea to do so.

For courtesy’s sake, though, it is a good idea to let your clients know at least two weeks in advance, so that they have time to make other arrangements.

Hopefully, you are taking a few minutes to look beyond the holiday (and the possible breakdown) to tax time. Now is a good time to organize some of your home business information and documentation — if you haven’t been all year. Just do a little bit at a time so that you don’t feel overwhelmed. Some things to think about include the following tax deduction possibilities:

* Home office supplies

* Computer

* Business travel expenses

* Car or truck

* Trade subscriptions

* Cell phone use

* Child care

You can also take a deduction for your Internet use and part of your mortgage — the part that encompasses your home office. Tomorrow and early next week, we will take a look at how to take the tax deductions for your Internet use and your mortgage use.

If you are unsure about whether you can take a deduction (you should be using deducted expenses for business purposes only), you can contact the IRS or consult a tax professional.

One of the hardest things about a home business is that it is, in fact, at home. It’s hard to separate your work from your home life when your work is at your home. However, it is important to make that distinction. You need to establish a quitting time, even if it is something as simple as “I’ll be done in two hours.” Even if you don’t have your quitting time established early enough to get the house cleaned, you should have it established at a point in the day where you still have time to spend with your family.

Establishing a quitting time can be difficult, though. Sometimes you feel as though you just need to get something done. You can help get around this by creating a to-do list that is ordered, with the most important items first. Do the “musts” on your list first thing so that if you aren’t through the list when quitting time rolls around, you can move what’s left to another day.

Maintaining your sanity when you have a home business is very important. And one of the best ways to do that is to take a deep breath and step away from your work at the end of the day.

This morning, my Internet connection went out for about an hour and a half. Which really put a damper on my workday. I had bills to pay an errand to run, so I did those things while I waited for the outage to end, but what would I have done if I hadn’t had something else to do? What if I really needed to get something done immediately? It helps to have a back-up plan for such situations, so that you are prepared. And I do. My back-up plans include the following:

* Take the laptop to the coffee shop, where there is free wi-fi. I’d have to buy a pastry and a hot chocolate while there, to avoid feeling guilty, but it’s worth it!

* Go to the library to use those computers. Of course, there is an hour time limit, so I’d have to see what I could manage in that time and then go elsewhere.

* Go to my brother’s house. I’d probably take the laptop there, too. My brother has a different Internet provider, and isn’t usually out when mine is.

It’s a good idea to have contingencies in place for when things go wrong. I have a cell phone so that when my phone is out, I can still make phone calls as well. Of course, if something major happens and nothing works, no matter where I am, then we’re all hosed anyway, so getting my stuff done is the least of my worries.

What are your plans for when something goes awry with your Internet connection?