One of the benefits of being self-employed is the ability to freely choose where you work from. This obviously only applies to those professions that are not location bound by definition. For example, most of the mortgage brokers, financial planners and other similar service providers don’t necessarily need to be office bound all the time. There are many wonderful locations where you can easily set up and conduct your business as efficiently as in any CBD based office.
Meet Matt Colle, xSource Operations Coordinator. Matt is currently surfing in Mexico and he still gets to look after his clients once he is back in front of his Mac. However, to be able to work efficiently away from your main office, there are few tips that can make a significant difference without affecting your budget much at all.
Hardware
The basis of any mobile office solution is a modern laptop computer. While you should count on power supply being handy, it is important to get an energy efficient laptop with enough processing power to make work from office or away from it a breeze. Any laptop with a solid-state drive (SSD), such as Macbook Air/Pro or equivalent will work well. 
Working with two screens makes life significantly easier than working off a single13”-15” lap top screen. There are few very good 15” mobile, USB powered screen solutions out there, one example being ASUS MB168B+. Another second screen option is iPad (with an appropriate app), however this option can only be handy for short use due to picture lag on iPad screen. To complete your workstation, you will need a solid hands-free headset. Good ones (eg Plantronics) start at $50.
Software
Key to being mobile is in good and affordable ‘cloud’ based software solutions; there are fewer desktop only applications these days and just about anything can be done using cloud based apps. The benefit of these is that information isn’t dependent on a single workstation and data can be shared and accessed with ease. Some examples of good apps are:
- Dropbox or Box for data storage
- Google Apps or Office 365 for email and productivity tools
- PDF Escape for PDF editing
- Webroot for internet security
One of the best things with these apps is that they are affordable and mainly subscription based (or free).
Connectivity
Key to good connectivity is a modern smart phone with 4G network access. 4G networks are very fast and generally available across ‘urban’ centres, with 3G networks available as a ‘fall back’ in other areas.
Using cloud applications and being mobile will eat data, so make sure you use a secure WiFi where available or are on a plan with decent data allowance. By setting up a VOIP network, you can have your local number and use it anywhere on your phone or laptop. VOIP calls are cheap and can save a lot of money if you are travelling overseas and on a WiFi network. How to set up VOIP network:
- Sign up with a VOIP provider and set up a local number (an example – Telecube)
- Download VOIP telephony software for your laptop and phone (there are free sofphones available, however Bria is a affordable and reliable paid app that can support multiple phone lines on laptop and smart phone)
- Set up your VOIP account on the softphone
- If overseas, you can auto-forward your mobile calls to your VOIP number and answer calls on your mobile via Bria and a WiFi network. And you can make outbound calls from your mobile phone using Bria/WiFi network using your local number. This way you can completely bypass roaming issues or paying daily fees to your network for overseas phone use.
Sometimes you might be able to connect via Skype either on your laptop or phone. If you require screen sharing, join.me offers a cheap/free solution that requires little computer knowledge or setting up. You can view someone else’s screen via laptop or your smart phone within 1-2 minutes of accessing this site. As many lenders/businesses still use fax, you can take your fax with you by signing to one of many e-fax providers around. With these providers, rather than faxing, you can email document to a fax number.
Printing
Printing is the easiest to set up in a mobile office – you simply don’t need one. Read more about paperless office, signing, etc in our other blog posts.
Data Security
While you are away from your main office, there are few hints on setting up a secure operation that protects your and your clients data:
- Ensure your laptop has data encryption always turned on. Both Mac and higher versions of Windows have built in encryption – you just need to make sure it is turned on.
- Enable password protected screen savers on your laptop. Use complex passwords and short time period for the screensaver to kick in.
- Ensure your internet/antivirus protection in up to date and turned on.
- Only use cloud solutions that offer data encryption on storage and transfer.
- Avoid using USB drives and paper copies of any personal or sensitive information.
- If working while travelling overseas, ensure that country you are accessing personal information from has privacy laws that are equivalent to Australian Privacy Principles.
So enjoy your freedom and contact us if you need more tips on setting up your mobile office.