Business owners are faced with a plethora of workloads that can literally lead them to make some deadly mistakes if not handled efficiently. In a fledging startup, entrepreneurs need to be aware of the numerous challenges that may arise when building a business and some of the essential tools needed to make them successfully manage their workload. Most importantly, being able to manage resources is vital to the growth of any business in order to avoid excessive overhead.
For the creative, modern and tech savvy entrepreneur, a laptop is undeniably essential and one of the key tools that help with administrative tasks. As a startup entrepreneur myself, I've made some awful decisions when buying important assets such as laptops. I've learnt from my mistakes by checking for reviews and asking questions from reliable sources before swiping my ATM card on such important investments.
Whether you're a vlogger, freelance designer or online coach, you cannot afford to make the wrong decisions when investing in tools and resources that support your career. For investments like laptops, it's advisable to check concrete reviews and be sure of your needs including sizes, features, prices and brands, before making a decision.
Choosing the ideal laptop for creative entrepreneurs requires a few considerations.
1. Consider the Specifications
Technology is never static and it keeps on changing, hence the importance of working with updated specifications while buying a laptop. Technical specifications include features such as the RAM capacity, hard drive, processor etc, which determines the reliability of a laptop.
Creative fields are different, so it's important to pay attention to the specs that work perfectly for your kind of work. While a blogger might need a 320 GB hard disk, a web developer will most likely work with a larger capacity. Selecting the right hard drive is also fundamental to the overall performance of your laptop and work. Low capacity will generally affect the system and cause frequent hangings, errors or even a system crash.
It's also a smart idea to invest in a Solid States Drive (SSD) or external hard drive, to enable a faster loading process for your laptop. Before buying, remember to check the system specifications to support your buying decision as they affect the overall functionality.
2. Choose an Operating System
One major priority when it comes to choosing a laptop is making the right decision about the operating software. With your line of work, would Windows or Mac work best for you? Can it work well with any other operating system? What are the risks involved in using these operating systems? By asking these questions and doing more research on them, you'll be guided on the right one to choose.
As a creative, it's also important to decide on the kind of applications or software you'll like to use for some of your projects. This will help you make better decisions on the operating system that works perfectly in line with your purpose.
3. Screen Size and Resolution
Before purchasing a laptop, think seriously about the screen size and resolution because they both affect your productivity. If your work involves large documents, pictures or videos, consider going for a screen of about 13-15 inches without compromising on portability. Large screen sizes directly affect the weight of the laptop and this drives some people to invest in a second desk monitor instead, due to its capacity to show details while making their work more effective.
The resolution is another critical factor that affects the information displayed on the laptop's screen. The larger the resolution, more but smaller text sized will be displayed. A resolution of about 1920 x 1080 pixels is adequate enough to accommodate the right features needed for most websites and workload.
4. Battery Life
No one wants to be constantly troubled by the inevitable problems that come with a poor battery life. Most creative entrepreneurs work on projects that are processor intensive and consume a lot of battery power. Thus, it is crucial to pay attention to some factors that help conserve power, such as LED lit screens, low-power processors and solid state drives.
The best laptops are guaranteed to offer power for close to 10 hours, which enables creative's to work even while commuting, in long car and plane rides. However, if the need arises, you can also purchase a spare battery to ensure you don't run out of power in case of emergencies.
5. Durability and Portability
While specifications are key factors when buying a laptop, it matters when you invest in a laptop that can last for a long time without cutting short on portability. Think about your lifestyle when making this decision. If you're always on the move, as most creative people are, then you'll need to invest in a lighter laptop that also has a strong battery life. The battery and screen size are key factors that directly affect the weight of a laptop and shouldn't be ignored when making a decision.
Clicking the checkout button or swiping your card is easy, but what's more important is being intentional about the products you intend to buy. For long term assets like laptops, doing a concrete background research with reliable reviews, questions from friends, colleagues or technical experts could go a long way in helping a creative entrepreneur or make the right investments. By considering the battery life, portability, operating system, specifications, storage and also other details like the keyboard functions; you will save yourself time and any long term problems that may arise.