Maintaining a professional image while working out of your home can be a challenge. It is not, however, an insurmountable challenge. You will need to create a professional "mental image" and, as much as possible, a professional physical space.

Start by getting dressed. Your dress will affect your mental attitude. I have read articles saying that as long as you are focusing on the client it doesn't matter what you are wearing. This is true as far as it goes, but creating "work-time" cues is great for switching gears into business mode. Getting into business mode is important regardless of whether or not you are going to be on the phone today. A full suit is not necessary, just real clothes. Business casual clothing says "competent professional", while a bath robe and fuzzy slippers say "cozy Sunday morning."

Now that you are in business mode, have a schedule. Define your "business hours" in advance and STICK TO THEM. It's fine to break up your work hours with a chunk of personal time, just make sure you have defined this ahead of time. Try not to vary your business hours too much from day to day. Clients need to know when they can reach you "in the office." At the end of each business day plan the next day, including which hours are for work and which are for personal time.

During your "regular business hours", make sure other household members understand you are working and not to be disturbed except for true emergencies. This is easier if you can separate your personal and work space. If you can possibly swing it, have a separate room with a door you can close. This room can be multi-purpose, but should be used for only one thing at a time. If your office turns into the family room at night, turn off the computer and put away your files before switching into family mode. If you have to work late, your family will need to have another space they can occupy for those hours.

Make sure you close that door or have some other kind of signal for quiet when you are making sales calls. This is critical! If you want a potential client to believe that you will be giving his project your full attention, you can not have proof to the contrary screaming in the background. Obviously if you have children in the house you cannot expect 8 hours of absolute silence. But even small children can understand that there are short periods of time when no loud noise is allowed. A fun sign with a cartoon saying "Shhh" or something else simple can help them remember. Once

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