If you’re in the sales profession, you probably spend at least some time working in your home office.

During my 4-mile bike ride this morning, I started thinking about home offices. I can’t explain why I started thinking about home offices. And then I started thinking about what constitutes a good office setup for professional salespeople.

During my sales training programs, I often ask salespeople how many days a week they work from a home office. You’d be surprised at the responses I’ve received. It runs the gamut from zero to three days a week. Different businesses have different requirements and protocols for their vendors.

When you spend half a day a week or three days a week selling from your home office, it’s important that you set it up in a way that maximizes your productivity.

I remember years ago my first office was in the corner of my one-bedroom apartment in New York City. The desk consisted of two 2 drawer file cabinets with an old door placed over the file cabinets to serve as a desk. those were the days

It scares me to think of all the sales tools I didn’t have when I started my first sales job. Whether you’re just starting out in the sales profession or a seasoned sales veteran, here’s a list of things to consider for your home office.

The first is the first!

1. Ideally, you want to have a dedicated room for your office. I realize that it is not always possible, but it is always a practical idea.

2. A good sized desk with a return for your computer. I think the bigger the better. Remember, this will serve as the command center for your business.

3. Good lighting is important, especially if your job involves a lot of reading.

4. A desk phone and a headset. Wearing headphones allows you to be more lively and energetic on all important phone calls. This can have a huge impact on your sales results.

5. Color coded filing system. Use red folders for high priorities, yellow folders for medium priorities, and blue folders for low priorities. Use a desk organizer for these priority folders.

6. A desktop computer with a 19-inch flat screen is ideal for most applications.

7. You should also consider the following: a fax machine, a copier, a scanner, a printer, a color printer, and the postage meter if you mail frequently. You’d be surprised how much time you can waste going to and from the post office.

8. Since time is money, I also suggest a watch and stopwatch to keep you on time.

9. You can also consider a camcorder and a digital recorder. While you’re at it, a digital camera.

10. Close at hand I also suggest having a dictionary and thesaurus. Open the dictionary and cross out the following words: can’t, impossible, hope and discount. Tomorrow I fly to California. I don’t expect the driver to take me there, I expect him to take me there, that’s a big difference. And remember, when you’re selling, you get what you expect!

11. Depending on how much time you spend in your office and of course your budget, you should have a very comfortable chair.

12. A white board: the bigger, the better. It’s a great place to post your goals in your results. Written goals make things happen for salespeople, so why not put them in neon lights so you can see them every work day?

13. The more time you spend in your home office, the more important this is. Fill your office with things that inspire and motivate you.

14. You should also have a bookshelf full of inspirational, motivational, informative, and educational books. The size of your library is a pretty good indicator of your sales success.

You should also buy a couple of large three ring binders. Buy a couple of reams of 3-hole copy paper. There is a lot of useful information available as downloads that you can print and file in these folders.

Clutter affects creativity. Every three months, throw out anything in your office that isn’t essential to your home office’s productivity.

As time goes on, continue to add things to your office that make you feel more comfortable and productive.

Just don’t get too comfortable in your office. Do everything you can to optimize your face-to-face selling time with your customers and sales prospects; that’s where the real action is.