As a solopreneur, you have a lot of things to look forward to, one of them being a home office. Although setting up an office at home can take a lot of work and some careful planning, it’s well worth the work.
Once you have your office setup and are ready to celebrate the first official day of working solo, it’s important to keep everything in your office from your expensive tech equipment to your paper files safe and secure.
Want to make sure that you don’t forget any steps in securing your home office? Consider the following tips.
1. Protect Your Devices Against Viruses
Whether you invested in a new computer or are just using your laptop until you can afford an upgrade, it’s crucial to protect any device, that you plan to use for work, against viruses and malware.
While most computers and device already come with antivirus software setup, it never hurts to have some backup options. Even reputable tech companies hit some major glitches when it comes to security so you can’t always trust that your computer or device is safe as is.
Software like TotalAV gives your computer a free full system health check and has many features that keep your computer and mobile devices running smoothly, efficiently, and safely.
2. Keep Your Work Devices Separate From Personal
While it may be difficult and unnecessary to have a separate phone for all of your business-related phone calls, you should definitely consider keeping your other work and personal devices separate such as a PC, laptop, or tablet.
It’s also important to keep family and friends from using your home office for anything other than related to your work. Even if think that lending your friend a laptop for a few hours isn’t a big deal, you never know what private files might be accessed or if a virus or other malware may be picked up during that short stint away from your office.
3. Invest in A Fireproof Safe
Whether you’re going on a week long vacation or just done with work for the day, it’s a good idea to get into the habit of putting important documents, flash drives, hard drives, passwords, and other information that may be difficult to replicate in a fireproof safe.
Depending on the size and type of safe you need, you can spend as little as $40 and up to nearly $1,000. It may not seem like a “must have” purchase but it’s always better to play it safe than having to experience a tragedy and start from scratch.
4. Insure Your Home Office
Depending on whether you own your home or rent, there may be different policies required for getting coverage for everything in your home office. Even if you live in a quiet, low-crime neighborhood or in a security apartment building, you never know when you may experience a break-in or another disaster that leaves with nothing.
5. Consider A Keypad Entry
Even if you live alone and you have a security system in your home, it may be a good idea to install a keypad entry to gain access to your office. While it may seem like an unnecessary security measure it can save you a lot of trouble if you have an intruder or even a snoopy overnight guest.
Conclusion
Don’t have a security system installed in your home and don’t want one? Make sure that you take extra measures to keep your home office as safe as possible. As a solopreneur, your business means everything and it’s up to you to keep it secure.