Guest Post by Lisa Kanarek

Running a household can be more demanding than running a business. When your personal life and your business life are in the same place, technology is one of the best ways to manage all aspects of your life. Faster, better and easier-to-use technology is available and more affordable than before. The dilemma isn’t whether there’s technology available to help you be more productive, it’s knowing which technology to use.

Finding the right computer

Technology changes often and trying to keep up with the latest computer is challenging, but not impossible.  When you’re shopping for a desktop computer or a laptop, decide what you want it to do. Will you use it mostly for sending and answering emails, for handling word processing, or for doing design and layout projects? When you know your business needs, find the right computer to handle each task. No matter what tasks you’ll be handling, buy more memory than you think you’ll need. Eventually you’ll use it. Also, whether you buy a computer online or through a retailer, make sure technical support is only a phone call or an immediate appointment away.

Picking a Printer

A good printer can make you look good to your clients and prospects, while an unreliable machine can affect your business image. When you’re looking for a printer, find out the paper capacity. The more paper a printer holds, the less time you’ll spend having to add more.  Also, look at the “footprint,” or the amount of desktop space it needs, including the paper tray and make sure you have enough room for it. I really like the Brother MFC-J615W because it has a compact, modern design that doesn’t take up a lot of space, and it looks great in any home office.

A Reliable Backup System

If you damage your computer — I slipped and fell while holding my laptop — you can replace the hardware fairly easily. The data however, may not be as easy to replace. A good investment you can make is in a reliable backup system.  You can choose between removable media drives (thumb drives) or external hard drives.  Remember to test your backup system often to make sure you’ve actually saved your information.  Also, keep two copies of your backed up data in different places, away from your home office.

Protecting Your Investment

You never know when your power may go out or when you may experience a power surge. Protect your equipment by using a surge protector. Go one step further by investing in an Uninterrupted Power Source (UPS).  A UPS gives you at least five minutes to backup what you’re doing before the power goes out.

Voice Mail

Whether you use your cell phone for business or install a separate business line, make sure you’re the only person who answers your phone (unless you have an assistant). Family members, especially teenagers, aren’t always the best at taking messages. Test your outgoing message to make sure there aren’t any noises in the background that you didn’t notice while you were recording your message.

Keeping up with the latest technology is challenging and at times, frustrating.  By finding the right equipment to meet your needs, you’ll be able to keep up with technology and furnish your home office with equipment that will help you stay productive.

Lisa Kanarek is one of the nation’s leading home office experts and the author of five books including, Working Naked: A guide to the bare essentials of home office life and Home Office Solutions. She is the founder of HomeOfficeLife, a firm that advises corporations and individuals on all aspects of working from home and is founder of the blog WorkingNaked.com.

Have you designated a formal space in your home as a home office? Do you have the necessary technology for doing your work?

Disclosure: Affiliate links were used throughout this post.

Last week, I unplugged four out of the five weeknights. After 4:30/5 pm, I was off the computer and remained off. One night I was forced to unplug, but that’s another story you can read about on 40weeks Plus. However, what I realized last week was how great unplugging can be. I still think I got lots done – work-wise anyway, not in the home – but, I don’t feel overly spent.

Something else I found myself doing was connecting with my husband in small ways. Nothing major – but, I would catch myself staring at him, admiring the hard work he does to be a good father and husband. I found myself actually missing him and yearning to be near him. It brought back memories of those intense, passionate, and highly emotional days when we were only sixteen and learning to love each other.

Wonderful, isn’t it?

My unplugging continued through the long holiday weekend. I don’t think I opened the laptop more than once over the three day weekend, rarely checked in on email on my phone, and only tweeted once or twice over the weekend. While it wasn’t 100% unplugged, anyone who knows about working from home, especially in social media, knows it really was unplugging compared to a normal day.

And, not surprisingly, my world is not turned upside down. Sure, I have a few more emails to answer than I did on Friday afternoon, but nothing urgent. Yes, I could have gotten ahead on blog writing for this week, but all will not be lost. Instead, I have a weekend full of family time to show for it and many laughs that were shared. If only the house had cleaned itself while we were having fun this weekend…

Very timely, as I was going through my google reader account yesterday, these two posts were there waiting for me to read:

• The Importance of Soul Work for Bloggers and Businesswomen
• Productivity & Quality Down Time: They Go Hand in Hand

How did you spend your holiday weekend? Did you celebrate Labor Day as I did by taking a day off?