Making a start on working from home...

You can't argue that it's an attractive prospect – being your own boss, setting your own hours. Or maybe you're looking into how it's possible to do your job from the comfort of your own home. It would certainly cut down on travel costs and there's the possibility of fitting your working hours around family life. But where to start? Whatever your profession or plans, there are a few steps you could take to begin your journey on the self-employed or working from home road that might help you achieve that elusive work/life balance…

If you've got an idea as to how you can transfer your skills to build your own business or go freelance, the first place to start is by setting up a business bank account. Even if you only plan on doing this part time, it's a great way to keep track of your income and will be a godsend when it comes to doing your tax. Another advantage of having a separate account is that you can use this to pay for those business essentials – stationary supplies and broadband for example. Even if you're not earning enough to pay tax to begin with, this is still good business practice for the future. There's no harm in searching for a few useful trade discounts or seeing what prices online suppliers offer. A Viking Direct voucher code or  similar retailers might be a good starting point.

As a sole trader, you could benefit from better prices on more costly business expenses – if you need to invest in a new laptop or other IT equipment, for example, then this could come in very handy indeed. Not only can you get some good products on the high street, but it's also well worth researching business and wholesale prices too. Dell Business shopping vouchers or other supplier offers might ease the pressure of any larger expenses that you could incur and may help get your project off the ground even sooner.

By employing another freelancer to design your website, you could save yourself a lot of time and stress. Check out freelance websites for web design specialists (after you've registered your own freelance profile too, of course). This offers a fantastic alternative to tearing your hair out doing it on your own and they might be able to offer you a very attractive price. But before taking this step, it's best to register your chosen domain name before anyone else nabs it. A GoDaddy voucher code or packages from other companies offering domain hosting could well be a good starting point. Once it's done, you'll have your URL ready and waiting to build upon.

Even if the pounds don't some pouring in to start with, at least now you'll be prepared and organised for when they do!