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Tips for a smooth home office move

Image courtesy of ehow.com

Hello blog, it’s been a while! The main reason for my woeful silence is that I recently moved home and office, and have been focusing on the practicalities of setting up and running my business from a new location.  I know, I know, excuses, excuses!

I thought I’d share with you some tips for ensuring a home office move goes as smoothly as possible while juggling translation deadlines, so that you can get up and running again in no time.

1)      Planning ahead early: this might sound obvious, but when you know you’re moving make a list of all the companies and services you will need to notify. I’m a big list-maker, and found that a making a quick list on a Google docs spreadsheet which I could tick off was the best way of keeping the information somewhere I could not lose it. This will save a lot of headache. Don’t forget to let your clients know your new office address and update your website, as well.

2)      Stay easily contactable by phone: my clients needed to know that I would be unavailable for a couple of days while I was getting my new home office unpacked and set up, but I wasn’t sure if I would have a landline immediately. I had already planned ways of making sure they knew how to get in touch with me via my Smartphone (which of course did not change), but I also have a subscription to an online number through Skype which allowed them to continue to call me on a landline number which I could provide them with well in advance of the move, making the transition easier.

3)      Don’t even try to live without broadband: I really take broadband internet access for granted now, and the thought of trying to get anything done without it sends shivers down my spine. If you can’t get your broadband set up in your new office immediately (or as soon as you plan to be back at work), you will need to have a Plan B. My Plan B was a pay-as-you-go mobile broadband stick which I had purchased a while ago as a back-up. Remember the benefits of having your own domain email address not linked to your ISP as well (rather than @btinternet.com, @aol.com etc.), so that you can be reached from any computer connected to the internet.

4)      Contingency planning: it’s a fact, things can go missing or get broken in moves, so make sure that if the worst happens (and by worst I mean something untoward happening to your trusty main office computer, and/or the room you were planning to use as an office being less suitable than you initially thought), you won’t be reduced to a quivering wreck because you have that Plan B ready and waiting. For me this means having a back-up laptop (or 2) available for me to work on anywhere. Again, in this scenario, the mobile broadband stick and online landline number will come in handy.

5)      Pack strategically: I didn’t actually pack my office until the night before the removal men arrived, because I need to be working on a job right up until then, although I did pack some books I was sure I wouldn’t need the weekend before the move. When I did do the final pack, I made sure that everything I would need first the other end was at the top of the boxes, and clearly marked to avoid those situations involving crazed rummaging through boxes, packing paper and cardboard flying in all directions.

6)      Focus above all on getting organised: moving home and office at the same time can be a recipe for frazzled nerves, so if it all leaves you feeling beleaguered, then just take your time to move past that by getting yourself organised – get any admin you’ve let slip in order, locate those dictionaries buried at the bottom of the last unpacked box and generally help yourself to feel at home and in control of your new office.  Hey, you could even indulge in an office spa day.

By following my own advice, happily the transition to working from a new location was as smooth as I could have hoped, with all the messy stuff out the way within a couple of hours so that I could get back to my translation work.