Doing business from the garden

If you have ever dreamed of a more gentle and relaxed lifestyle, then working from home may well be the answer. Thousands of people have already made the move towards a better work/life balance but the biggest decision most wannabe home workers face is where they are actually going to work from.

A family house usually means shared space and lots of family members coming and going. Just finding a private area big enough and quiet enough to work in can be a nightmare. For many of the UK's army of home workers, their desire for a better life only became a reality when they invested in a garden workplace.

Building a garden room is a logical step towards independence as it doesn't usually involve planning permission and yet can provide huge amounts of versatile extra space. Best of all it means you have the opportunity to design your very own working environment. How many people can say that?

The first step is to decide what you might want to do in your new garden building. Will you be making a business out of arranging dried flowers or is all your work on the telephone? Do you actually need a workshop or would a conventional office suit you best? It really is very important to think this through thoroughly before you commission your new garden building

Let us assume you go for the office option. Is this going to be a conventional office with a stand alone desk or would you like bespoke fitted furniture? Would you like a built-in washroom? Do you need a kitchenette or just a shelf to keep the kettle on? Do you have a huge multifunctional printer that will need a re-enforced floor or are you simply looking for space to put a desk, chair and telephone? Everything is possible with a little planning.

Practical people may throw their hands in the air in horror at this point. What they want is workshop space designed to suit their skills and laid out perfectly so every new task is a pleasure to perform. It must be ergonomically sound and safe to work in. Ceiling height can be important and so can the amount of available daylight. Just examining the options can take ages so you probably need to start right away!

Careful planning is the key to home working success. Making sure that everything is in place and working properly is absolutely essential. Phone lines need to be installed or extended. Computer networks need to be established. Workshops need to be practical and functional with equipment in precisely the right place. It won't happen without a good deal of thought.

While you are planning your new workplace, make sure you spare a few minutes to think about access. Do your clients need to visit you at work? You may need to plan garden landscaping to include paths and possibly lighting - and give a thought to disabled access. Could this be an issue for you?

Making the decision to work at home is just the start. When you are settled in your new workplace you can relax and enjoy the fruits of your labours - but right now you had better start planning!