If you are a business owner, you write every day. Emails, notes, newsletters, articles, blog posts, Facebook updates, you name it, you’ve gotta write it. And as far as writing correctly, you either chew your nails over “its” versus “it’s”, or you don’t—you write what you think is right and hope the reader will forgive you if it isn’t.

You might think that it’s easy as an editor to proof my own stuff, but no. It’s even more painful, because I check everything I write thoroughly and still make mistakes. I’m here to tell you, though, how important it is to make sure everything you write is as accurate as possible, because it all reflects on you as a business person.

I have seen much in my years of editing for businesses. Believe it or not, I have seen people misspell their own company name, which to an editor is like fingernails on a chalkboard! So here’s my advice.

Don’t trust that computer program. Forget spell check and grammar check; you won’t like it when they turn “publick” into “pubic” after you’ve sent out that nasty letter to your local library. Do the work. Use Merriam Webster for spelling and a free online writing guide like Paradigm .

Check for more than spelling and grammar. Check font for consistent size; check headings (a typical place for errors); check your phone number, email address and company name. Proof also for clarity and tone.

Read it over. Don’t ever, ever, ever send anything out without reading it carefully first. The simplest email can turn off a customer if it’s full of errors, an attachment is missing, or you sound angry when you really aren’t.

Let it sit. The best thing you can do, if you have 24 hours, is to let it sit and read it again tomorrow. Pretend it’s wine and let it ferment (all right, a really cheap wine). You won’t believe what you find if you read it with fresh eyes.

Get help. If you aren’t good at writing, get help—have a trusted friend proof it, or pay someone to do it for you. We’re fast, we’re reasonable, and we’ll help you look marvelous. Good luck!

Fran Fahey, Fran’s Fine Editing

Ah, the joys of a home-based business. Not having to change out of your jammies to begin writing. Being able to just leave to do an errand whenever you want. Roz Chast’s cartoon in the 12/6/10 New Yorker, called “The Freelance Life”, uses the punch line “Honey, I’m STILL HOME!” Great life, huh . . . oh, really?

I’ve worked from a home office for over 20 years. It’s not for the faint-hearted. Witness the bored cat who takes a leisurely stroll over your computer keys; the unfinished projects lying around the house that call out faintly to be completed; the realization that you’ve just spent the last seven hours tapping away without a break. It’s a challenge even for the most self-disciplined among us to work at home successfully.

So, I offer a few tips for those of you who are in my situation and haven’t been doing this for your whole lives yet.

Change out of your jammies. Pretend you are really going to work. I’ve found that if I don’t put on at least my lined jeans, a corduroy shirt, and regular shoes, I just don’t take it seriously enough and give it my all. Establish a clear boundary between your leisure time and your work day.

Find a good schedule and stick to it. Decide when you are most productive during the day, set up a schedule and try to work those hours each day. Schedule lunch, breaks, and close of business, so that you don’t forget to eat, go to the bathroom regularly, and stop working. Resist the temptation to log in again after work hours. Don’t let working at home interfere with your physical or mental health.

Treat your home office like it’s really an office. Even if you don’t have a separate room for an office, use a desk and file cabinet, not a corner of your kitchen table. Not that my own office is perfect, but I can find everything I need right away and my invoices are always up to date. I go to my office to work, and I leave when I’m done; the physical separation between work and play allows me to have the energy to enjoy and succeed at both.

If you have the additional challenge of providing child care while working at home, please share your ideas on how you run your home office. I wish all of you the best in managing your home-based businesses and achieving your dreams.

Fran Fahey, Fran's Fine Editing