When you're an entrepreneur starting up a business alone—sometimes called a "solopreneur"—it's challenging to take on all the tasks and responsibilities of a company without help. In addition to creating your products or working on the services you provide, you need to keep the administrative part of your business going as well. Setting appointments, taking calls, filing documents, and balancing the books is a lot of work for one person, but if you're able to pick up ideas from the following suggestions, it can work.

Try Live Answering Services

Answering the phone can be a distracting task if you're trying to get other work done. Because your business only includes you, however, you can't ask anyone else to do it—unless, of course, you work with a live answering service like Security Services Northwest, Inc. With such a service, others will field your calls remotely and either patch them through to you or take a message. There's a great deal of flexibility with these services; if you only want to hire them for a few hours a day, that's not a problem. Live answering services can also help you seem more professional, as you're not the first point of contact. Having others help you deal with client or customer calls can also give you the time you need for other work.

Open Separate Accounts

If you're still using your own personal account for everything, it's time to change. Business checking accounts are best if your business is a serious one. Keeping company money away from your personal cash is not only simpler to deal with, but it's also helpful whenever you need to see an accountant or file taxes. You might also be eligible for business loan incentives if you've had a business account for a time. Investigate a few banks for the best arrangement.

Scan Receipts Daily

Having thick piles of random paper receipts around is something that can cause a lot of stress. You may know that you've got to file those receipts, but the chore can seem daunting. Instead, just make a point of scanning every receipt as it comes in; if that's not possible, aim for scanning the day's receipts each night. This will get rid of unsightly paper scraps, and you can file the receipts in computer folders for use later without getting overwhelmed.

Using these suggestions makes being a professional easier. You'll soon become used to running an efficient small company and being a professional in business.