Introduction
Man is a social being. He has strong gregarious instinct, so that he develops interactive networking with fellow human beings. On account of naturally ingrained social urge, human beings adopt marital status and shape family. Family is basic unit of collective life. Family life inevitably demands a separate place for family members. A separate home is social / cultural necessity of family life. Home is generally dedicated for countless social interactions/cultural activities. An effective social life needs continuous flow of financial resources. Financial resources are accrued through economic struggle. An economic struggle is earning-spending part of human life; it is indispensable for human survival. Initially, economic struggle was agrarian. Overtime, the struggle has become diverse and advanced. Originally, the economic struggle was brawn-driven, now it is dominantly brain-driven. A physical economic struggle with heavy usage of body power demands a specific business location, e.g., agriculture work demands agriculture land, manufacturing efforts need heavy machinery and building, and trading activity demands multiple means of transportation and transport for merchandize. Now life is technology based, the preconditions of many economic professions have changed. Land, physical structure, heavy transport, and tangible transportation network are no more decisive for variety of economic efforts. Moreover, cost/toll of transportation has become expensive and cumbersome. Modern science has introduced many effective communication channels such as phone, mobile, internet, intranet, and fax. The latest communication channels and advent of innovative services opened some new avenues of earning. The new avenues of earning are independent, partially or totally, with conventional notion of commercial business location. Nowadays, a person can adopt home for economic struggle, especially, a knowledge worker can select home for economic efforts. An effective selection of home for business depends on area of economic struggle. The varied fixed jobs/consulting tasks/entrepreneurial activities can be done appropriately from home. The new situation has made the economic agent somewhat relax on survival issue. It is blessing of science and technology.
Desirability of Home Based Works
At individual level, the desirability of working from home depends on multiple things. Most prominently, it is ability to complete a job, economically, timely, properly, and efficiently. Generally, a job is awarded to someone on account of professional acumen. An awarded job is either interactive or non-interactive. For example, writing, bookkeeping, and data entry are non-interactive jobs, while sale, purchase, and construction are interactive tasks. A few jobs are blend of dealing and non-dealing, such as, software development and marketing. Job-Givers/Job-Seekers are better judge towards desirability of place for job accomplishment. Usually, the contractor considers time-efficiency/work-quality, while the workers think about profitability/prosperity.
At institutional level, the desirability of working from home depends on efficient-effective usage of scarce resources. Moreover, institutions are initiated to actualize certain goals. The survival goal is obviously the primary motive of every business. The survival goal is comparatively easy to achieve at home-based business on account of multiple supporting factors, however, advance growth targets are generally not achieved on account of incompatibility of company’ goals and socially structured family environ. A front office is strategic need for certain deals. Entrepreneur can distribute wisely the time between home office and front office. Presently, home as work place for some advanced operational activities is feasible on account of modern technology. For example, the paucity of physical space can be overcome through virtual space or website, the scarcity of promotional opportunities can be compensated by online images/introductions, it reduces the inventory cost, as well. Moreover, the new modes of communications such as mobile or fax can compensate nicely some previously inevitable business interactions.
Initiation of Home Based Work
Any task that a person undertakes is called work. A work for monetary benefits is called economic work. A sustainable home based economic work depends on multiple attitudes towards work & home. The categorical division between home & work is required on place, time, and communication. An effective approach towards home business must addresses three issues:
- A definite separation of office place within home,
- Specification of working hours,&
- Demarcation between home and work communications.
A separate place at home for official work is first vital need for home based business/home-based jobs. The size and setting is not significant, a small and humble setting will create the same results. Secondly, a definite specification of working hours would enhance time efficiency of entrepreneur/worker. Thirdly, a set of separate communication channels (phone, fax, internet and mobile) is extremely significant for fruitful home based work.
Major Issues of Home Based Works
Major benefits of home business are low overhead cost and zero transportation cost, while the major worries of home business are non-professional environment and undisciplined way of working. A few significant dimensions of home based works are motivation, age, sociability, and stability.
Significance of Motivation
People work on account of motivation. Motivation is either internal or external. The internal motivation of work is personal or social, while the external motivation of work is generally monetary benefits. Work at home must assume presence of internal motivation towards work. The very existence of internal motivation towards work develops time efficiency. The cornerstone of time-efficiency is conceptual-practical clarity on time-task duality. The duality guides the people how tasks are linked, directly and indirectly, with multiple time durations. The ultimate purpose is to spend optimum time on tasks. Time efficiency is spoiled by ignoring time-task duality. It is noteworthy that proactive level of temporal intelligence is inevitable for efficient-effective working.
Significance of Age Phenomenon
Human life has three phases, dependent, independent, and interdependent. Initially, person is dependent on others; normally it is age of 20 and below. Overtime, person becomes independent on multiple life affairs, normally after the age of 20. Finally, person becomes interdependent on multiple life affairs, normally after the age of 40. Independence is necessary precondition for home based economic effort. Home affairs are dominantly unpredictable. Guest may come anytime, illness may catch a family member without intimation, and family members may involve you on countless petty issues. An urgent work may divert attention from important works. An independent role is vital to avoid multiple interruptions.
Significance of Sociability
Human personality has multiple dimensions, both personal as well as interactive. Sociability is an important dimension of human personality. A sociable person is inclined towards immense social interactions; consequently effective social life is shaped. Effective social life does not demand focused approach during interaction, dilly-dally is normal attitude, while the very success of economic struggle is focused attitude towards economic tasks. A non-focused person is inappropriate for home based working. A novice may become divergent, while the expert may become lethargic.The accurate understanding/execution of social intelligence is inevitable for productive and fruitful home based business.
Significance of Stability
An important issue of home based working is professional credibility of work or easy accessibility of worker for client. A company can make a tangible display office for professional credibility and permanent virtual/mobile presence for easy availability. A stable home-based work must manage these stability factors, i.e., credibility & accessibility.
