There’s only one problem: the sales manager is a micromanager. I’m not only helping their staff make a smooth transition from a corporate office to a home office, I’m teaching the sales manager how to let go and let his staff work on their own. If he can’t change his controlling ways, the company is going to let him go.

In the Management Excellence article “Leadership Caffeine-Give Your People Room to Run,” Art Perry shares 11 ways to avoid micromanaging. These tips apply to anyone with a large or small staff or someone who works with a team of freelancers.

1. Focus on the working environment! You own the responsibility to create and sustain a positive working environment.  You cannot do that by micromanaging.

2. Create the right type of oversight by creating a culture of accountability for the values and norms in that environment.

3. You are a teacher. Teach and train. And then teach some more.

4. You are a coach. Observe and provide timely constructive and positive feedback.  Everyday.

5. Be approachable, but don’t spend all of your own time approaching. Give your team room to run.

6. Create context, not confusion. Clarify and communicate. Create context for key organization strategies and goals.

7. Expectations and accountability drive performance. Set clear and challenging expectations for individual and team performance.  This is not micromanaging, it is good management.

8. Remember, you’re there to help, don’t hinder. Knock down obstacles and free your people to run.

9. Defend, don’t distract. Learn to shield team members from distractions. Keep your people free to run, part 2.

10. Stay out of the way. You are a distraction most of the time.  See the prior item.

11. Assert only when you need to. Don’t assert often.  If you have to assert often, review the prior 11 items.

There’s hope for the micromanager I’m working with. Until we talked about micromanaging and how it was holding back his staff, he thought he was helping them. A little awareness can go a long way.

Part of the reason is that I’m from a family of five kids which makes me want my own space, my own supplies and as much privacy as possible. This site is called Working Naked, after all.

The other part is that too much of a good thing can be bad. You may adore your spouse but if you spend every day and night with him or her, you may drain the fun out of your business and your relationship.

If you’re still willing to work with your spouse, there are a few ways to keep the peace so no one considers hiring a hit man by closing time.

• Buy duplicate supplies. No one likes to reach for a stapler and realize it’s on someone else’s desk or in another room. Get creative and buy two sets of office supplies in different colors.

• Use separate equipment. There’s nothing wrong with cutting costs, but sharing a computer to save money will cost you in the long run. Whether you use a desktop and your spouse uses a laptop, each of you should have your own equipment. If neither one of you needs to print often, share a printer.

• Leave the room when you need to take a call. Unless you can talk quietly and not bother your spouse while he or she is in the office, leave the room. Anyway, it’s good to get away from your desk throughout the day.

• Use separate desks. Whether you install a long counter with two workspaces or use two desks, keep them away from each other.

• Stay in your own territory. If you and your spouse have different working styles, a neat freak spouse doesn’t want to find stacks of paper on his or her desk. Keep your piles to yourself. If you’re the pack rat spouse and like to work with papers piled everywhere, your picky spouse may drive you nuts when he or she tries to straighten the piles or convince you to toss everything.

• Compromise on the temperature. You may like the office to be as cold as a meat locker, but not everyone likes to wear three sweaters, a hat and gloves to work. Consider using a fan for your side of the room and keep the thermostat at a reasonable temperature.

I’m a firm believer in everyone working together, but not always in the same space.

Guest post by Steve Anderson

Working from home was a dream long before it became a reality, and that’s because I needed plenty of time to convince myself that leaving the corporate office was not some crazy dream.

In hindsight, I’m sure I wasted too much time agonizing over the potential drawbacks. “I’m with a successful business, making great connections, challenging myself professionally. How do I leave this?”

It was good to ask those questions, but I needed to also ask myself another obvious question: “How much would I have to be offered to leave it all?” Could I leave for the same salary? Could I work from home for 10 percent less? or 20? or 30 percent?

Ask yourself that question, but before you answer it, answer this question: “How much money am I actually earning?”

“Easy,” you answer. “It’s right there on the paycheck, right?”

Is it? Have you ever calculated how much “real income” you pocket after all the payroll taxes, benefit deductions, and work-related expenses? I made the calculation (which shows that you don’t have to be a CPA) and it made my decision to move home infinitely easier.

In a nutshell, here’s how I did it:
I took my salary per week, then pulled the weekly deductions (dental, health, retirement, federal and state taxes). Then, I made columns for my expenses each week: fuel for my commute, eating out for lunch, dry cleaning … and anything else I wouldn’t have spent if I worked from home (like $400 on each of three new suits … shirts, ties, shoes, not included).

That gave me my “net.” Ouch. It was a huge eye opener to see how much I really pocketed at the end of a week. But I wasn’t done.

I then took that “net” and divided it by the real hours I was working each week in the office. I say “real hours,” because if you’re working 40 or 50 or 60 hours every week, you should know how much you’re earning for each of those hours – even if you arrive at a number that’s surprising and perhaps disappointing.

I’d suggest you go even further and calculate the total time you’re out of your home each day. (If you leave at 8:00 and get home at 6:00, that’s 10 hours a day or 50 hours per week.) Now, divide your “net” by that number … and feel free to wince.

Only when you’ve made your calculation should you compare your current salary to the income you’d make working from home. By looking deeply at the math, you may very well find that you could take a $5,000 or $10,000 cut at home, and still earn more per hour AND end up with the same net yearly income you’d make in a corporate office.

Naturally, results are certainly going to vary. Be sure to include self-employment tax and expenses such as health insurance and a retirement fund. (Insurance through your spouse is a huge cost saver.)

But when it’s all said and done, you might find that’s easier to go home than you ever imagined.

Steve Anderson is the Word Guy at pounce.com, a full-service boutique specializing in creative and strategic planning for print and Web marketing.

• Delegate. My friend has a hard time letting go of tasks to the point of micromanaging. When she does delegate, she ends up doing most of the tasks herself or redoing whatever it is she has asked someone to do. Delegating works well if you clearly explain what you want someone to do and then follow up near the deadline date. When someone knows that you’re going to follow up, they’re more likely to do as you ask.

• Focus on the big picture instead of obsessing over small, insignificant tasks. Her retail business is so busy that she rarely finds time to post the next week’s schedule until the weekend. Her employees don’t know what hours they’re supposed to work the following week until late Saturday.  She’s finally agreed to create the schedule a week in advance.

• Listen to the experts. My friend acquired her company from a longtime friend of hers who wanted to retire. Although he doesn’t come to the store anymore, he’s always available to give her advice, share shortcuts and even train her staff. She refuses his help because she wants to prove to herself that she can run the business on her own. When she realizes that her stubbornness is costing her time and money, she’ll accept help when it’s offered and listen to someone with experience.

• Train everyone to cover all positions. She hasn’t taken the time to teach all of her employees how to use the cash register, how to price items or even how to close up shop at the end of the day. That means that every day she has to either open or close her store and can’t take days off. (Her husband already calls her business “the other man.”) When she finally trains each employee to cover any position, she’ll be able to take some time off to recharge.

Take a close look at the way you work. Are you busy or effective?

Do you know how your business looks to the outside world? As your client base grows and your business gets busier, you may start to ignore the basics. Take time to look at your business from an outsider’s point of view.

• Analyze your Web site. Does it reflect the tone and style of your business today?  Your product photos and blog should be up-to-date. You don’t need to blog every day but a few times a week is ideal. If you want honest feedback about your site, ask for it. Six months ago I sent a short survey to friends, acquaintances and clients to get their input and insight. Their feedback helped me make a few changes to improve my site.

• Read a few of your outgoing messages. If you were supposed to attach a document, did you? Are there typos? Spell check will catch misspelled words but it can’t tell you automatically whether you’re using the right version of a word.

• Listen to your voice mail message. Can you hear your kids or spouse in the background? Make sure that your voice is clear and easy to understand.  Don’t forget to ask the caller to leave a detailed message that includes their phone number and the best time to return their call.

• Check to make sure the contact information on your business card is current. Business cards are cheap. Instead of crossing out an old phone number, order new cards. Also, make sure that your card is easy to read. A business card I saw last week had a light background, which made the white type hard to read.

Sometimes the image you have of your business can be a bit distorted. Make sure that what others see is a true reflection.

My first rappel down a waterfall...scary, but amazing!

A few weeks ago I spent a week in Costa Rica where I saw incredible plants and wildlife, and took part in more extreme sports (at least they were to me) than I ever have in my entire life. First I sailed across a zip line through the rainforest, then I jet skied across the ocean (note: choppy ocean) and then I went canyoning (in this case, rappelling down four waterfalls and one rock wall) in the rainforest.

Thinking back to my trip made me realize how running a home-based business is like rappelling down a waterfall.

• You’re out of your comfort zone. Just as it’s unnatural to hang onto a rope, push yourself away from the wall and plunge many feet below, starting a new business is unnatural. The way I felt rappelling down the first waterfall seemed as overwhelming as starting my first home-based business. Now that I’m on my third business, starting a new business feels more comfortable.

• You have to trust the experts. I had to trust that our guides at the top of the waterfall had attached the rope to me before they gave me a thumbs up to jump. When you’re running a home-based business, you have to trust that your CPA, attorney, marketing person, Webmaster and anyone else you hire to help you run your business, knows what they’re doing.

• You need to take risks. As I looked over the first waterfall, I questioned whether the risk of jumping off the wall backwards was worth the benefit. (Also, I kept asking myself what in the hell I was doing!) When you’re running your own business, you may think the same thing. If you don’t go out on a limb and start the business you’ve always dreamed of owning, you’ll never know whether or not you could have succeeded. Risks aren’t always worth the benefit but then again, many times they are.

• It’s important to take time to look around you and celebrate your successes. During the first descent, all I could think about was not slamming into the wall. By the last rappel, I looked around and noticed how cool the rocks and water gushing over the side looked. When my feet touched the ground, I was proud of myself for mastering (or at least trying to master) all five rappels. When you own your own business, it’s easy to focus on what’s not working and forgetting to celebrate your successes. They’re there. You just have to look for them.

We ran out of time before we could take on another extreme sport. But there’s always next time.

Here’s the deal: just because we’re working from home doesn’t mean that we’re available to wait for repair calls, UPS deliveries, or to pick up a friend’s kids from school when that friend can’t leave work.  Of course when it’s an emergency, there’s no question whether you should help out. But there’s a point where others can take advantage of you.

One woman in Zaslow’s article who was asked constantly for help from friends and neighbors, turned errand requests into a job.  She works part-time for a new online company called taskrabbit, that matches “senders” (people who need someone to do an errand for them) with “runners” (people who will handle the errand).  Now she’s paid for her time.

The bottom line is that someone who works from home is no different from her corporate counterpart except for having a more flexible schedule, dressing casually (if at all) and being available to handle last-minute emergencies.  She also has the freedom to say no to requests for favors when she’s doing what the person asking for the favor is doing, which is working.

Not knowing what I was going to do with the list, I took a risk and bought it from her daughter for a dollar.  After all, I was shocked that an eight-year-old would write a To-Do list, and her daughter was surprised that an adult would be dumb enough to pay for one.

What can you learn from this To Do list?  First, you’re never too young to plan your days; secondly, there’s nothing wrong with listing basic tasks that you may forget; and third, it’s good to wake up every morning (see #1), whether or not it’s on your To Do list.

A view of the CPI courtyard and classrooms.

The beautiful Monteverde campus in the rainforest (yes, it’s awesome) includes classrooms (of course), study areas, a library, perfectly landscaped courtyards and stylish yet functional apartments for the students. The CPI apartments and the family’s gorgeous townhouse (the couple has an incredible eye for design) are connected to the school.

Seeing the CPI staff and their owners in action reminded me of a few business tips.

• Listen to your clients. Students often ask about tours and sites to see, so Jonle started a tour division. Now, before a group of students comes to Costa Rica to study, they pick the activities they want to do and Jonle creates an itinerary for them. The students pay in advance and don’t have to worry about paying before every activity.

• Put systems in place to make your business run like clockwork. CPI’s administrative staff and teachers have clear-cut job descriptions and responsibilities. When Carlos and Jonle are away, it’s business as usual and if their staff has any concerns, they can reach the couple easily through their cell phones or Skype.

• Don’t be afraid to expand your business. The peak tourist season in Costa Rica isn’t during the summer when students study at CPI. Instead it’s during the winter months. Rather than leave the apartments empty, CPI rents apartments, called Casas del Toro, to tourists from around the world and organizes tours for their guests.

• Turn subcontractors and freelancers into full time employees when their workload increases. Rather than hire a contractor for individual projects, Carlos decided to hire a contractor full time. The contractor handles projects that are continually going on at one of the three campuses.

Visiting my friends in Costa Rica reminded me of one of the advantages of working from home. You can either stay small or grow your business as big as you want and still be home-based.

• Stop scribbling notes on any stray scraps of paper. Use your handheld, a daily planner or even a simple spiral notebook to keep track of notes to yourself. While I’m a huge fan of sticky notes, those suckers are easy to lose, especially when they stick to the back of another piece of paper.

• Write a list of specific work goals each day and mark them off as you finish them. Keep the list realistic.

• Have a set place to keep everything from paper clips to pens.

• Take a few seconds to put things back when you’re finished. If you think about it, it takes a few minutes to put something away, but you’ll save time in the long run.

• Make your work area as compact as possible. You’ll save time if you can grab everything you need — your phone, printer and files — without getting out of your seat.

• Leave your desk for 5 minutes every 1 ½ hours to stretch your body and invigorate your mind. After you start following the tip above, you’ll welcome the time away from your chair.

• Use a supportive chair, ergonomic keyboard and a desk that’s the right height to keep you from straining your back and your wrists while you type.

• Store phone numbers electronically within your handheld or within a contact management program. Then you can toss all of those business cards that are cluttering your desk.

• Set a time to leave your home office each day — and stick to it. Have you ever noticed that the less time you have to work, the more you accomplish? And the more time you have, the more time it takes for you to finish?

• Always carry a handheld, a daily planner or even a small notepad to jot down ideas that come to you after hours.

What do you do to be more efficient?