Setting up a portable office

 In General

The beauty of being a freelancer is that you can choose to work from just about anywhere. However, setting up a portable office requires some preliminary planning to make your operations efficient, secure and well-facilitated.

These are some of the most important things to think about when setting up a portable office:

Choosing the right hardware setup

Your computer will be the hub for your portable office. Not only will this be where all your work is produced and stored, your computer is likely to be your primary means of communicating with clients.

When choosing a laptop or tablet for a portable office, there are two things you need to consider; power and mobility. It needs to be light, durable and compact, as well as be able to handle the latest professional-grade software relating to your industry.

These are some of the other gadgets you should think about:

  • Portable printer and/or scanner for document administration
  • Spare charger and battery to keep your system up and running
  • Foldable Bluetooth ergonomic mouse
  • Small surge protector to guard against power fluctuations
  • High-quality webcam and microphone for video calls
  • Backup hard drive

Getting a reliable Internet connection for your portable office

Public Wi-Fi hotspots are more readily available than ever before. But these are not usually suitable for your business needs. Unsecured public networks can put your data at risk, tend to be slow and are prone to going down at the worst possible times.

Instead, you should think about investing in a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot (sometimes called a ‘MiFi’ device). This gives you scope to work literally anywhere there’s signal, rather than getting tied to the local coffee shop. You can choose from prepaid or pay-as-you-go options depending on how much data you intend to use.

Security should be your first concern when setting up a personal network. To achieve this, make sure to use an encrypted password and double-up with antivirus and malware software.

Make your records accessible anywhere

Your portable office setup should let you access all your data wherever you are.

To keep your work files accessible anywhere, store them in the cloud using software such as Dropbox or Google Drive. Instant messaging apps such as Google Hangouts and video call providers like Skype are useful for staying in touch with clients, whose details can all be logged on your smartphone.

Your financial records are one thing that you will need to make universally accessible. Rather than carrying around reams of paper and loose receipts, you can use advanced cloud-based accountancy software such as Xero. Using this software, you can set up automated invoicing, log all your tax and expense-related documents digitally and receive a comprehensive cash flow overview wherever you are.

Setting up a portable office is a great way to add variety to your everyday working practices. Use these simple tips and you should be able to master mobile working in no time.

Find out how advanced accountancy software can help you work from anywhere with 3 Wise Bears.

 

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