Getting Started In Your Very Own Home Business

Congratulations! You have made the decision to get started in a home business. Being an entrepreneur from home offers the best of both worlds. On one hand you get to be an entrepreneur, be your own boss and dictate your own income. On the other hand, you don’t have to worry about making the huge investments in capital that most traditional business owners are required to make.

Getting started in a home business is no cakewalk. It requires a certain level of determination, focus, discipline and persistence in order to do well.

The fact is, starting a home business is not for everybody. Don’t be fooled by the infomercials that paint this cozy lifestyle of fast cars, beautiful women and lots of money. It takes most business owners years to create that type of lifestyle, if they ever create it at all.

It is a good idea that before you get started in a home business that you spend some time doing some self reflection. Not everybody has the mentality necessary to be successful as a business owner. If you don’t, it is better that you find out now rather than invest your money and time into an effort of futility.

The following is a brief article taking from the United States Small Business Administration. It provides some great questions to ask yourself when you are considering whether you should get involved in owning a small business, whether it’s from home or any other business.

Is Entrepreneurship For You?

In business, there are no guarantees. There is simply no way to eliminate all the risks associated with starting a small business – but you can improve your chances of success with good planning, preparation, and insight. Start by evaluating your strengths and weaknesses as a potential owner and manager of a small business. Carefully consider each of the following questions
• Are you a self-starter? It will be entirely up to you to develop projects, organize your time, and follow through on details.

• How well do you get along with different personalities? Business owners need to develop working relationships with a variety of people including customers, vendors, staff, bankers, and professionals such as lawyers, accountants, or consultants. Can you deal with a demanding client, an unreliable vendor, or a cranky receptionist if your business interests demand it?

• How good are you at making decisions? Small business owners are required to make decisions constantly – often quickly, independently, and under pressure.

• Do you have the physical and emotional stamina to run a business? Business ownership can be exciting, but it’s also a lot of work. Can you face six or seven 12-­hour workdays every week?

• How well do you plan and organize? Research indicates that poor planning is responsible for most business failures. Good organization ­ of financials, inventory, schedules, and production ­can help you avoid many pitfalls.

• Is your drive strong enough? Running a business can wear you down emotionally. Some business owners burn out quickly from having to carry all the responsibility for the success of their business on their own shoulders. Strong motivation will help you survive slowdowns and periods of burnout.

• How will the business affect your family? The first few years of business start­up can be hard on family life. It’s important for family members to know what to expect and for you to be able to trust that they will support you during this time. There also may be financial difficulties until the business becomes profitable, which could take months or years. You may have to adjust to a lower standard of living or put family assets at risk in the short-term.

Wow, how come nobody talks about that in the infomercials?

On the other hand, if you are willing to put in the time and effort and make the necessary sacrifices, you can create a home business that will provide for a great lifestyle for you and your family. In fact, if you really do well, your home business can eventually become an international corporation making you a billionaire in the process!

A student at the University of Texas started a company in his dorm room with an initial investment of $1,000. Today, that small dorm room operation is now a multi-billion dollar international operation known as Dell computers. What about that young man? He is Michael Dell and he is a billionaire today!

What Are The Benefits Of Starting A Home Business?

There are a number of benefits to starting a home business. Among them are the following:

1. Flexibility & Freedom – When you run a business from home you get the ultimate in flexibility & freedom. You are not fixed to a specific schedule and you can set your own hours and work when and how you see fit. Do you have kids? How about being able to drop the kids off at school, do some work between, pick them up from school and continue your work after they go to bed?

2. The Ability To Control Your Income – When you work at a job, your boss or company is the one that controls your income. They will give you a raise only if they want to. In fact, if they decide you are no longer needed, they can fire you and completely eliminate your income source. As a home business owner you control your own income.

3. Home Business Tax Advantages – Home business owners get to access some incredible tax advantages, even if they only operate the business part time and they work a full time job. How would you like to be able to deduct a portion of your mortgage principle, your utility bills, your telephone bill and your automobile expenses? These deductions are all possible as a home business owner.

4. Reduced Overhead Costs – Most of the costs associated with operating a home business you are already paying now anyway. While there will obviously be some costs above and beyond your home expenses, being a home business owner allows you to be able to leverage your home and reinvest the money that would have normally gone to overhead into other areas of the business.

What Are The Disadvantages Of Starting A Home Business?

There are also a number of disadvantages to starting a home business as well. Here are a few of them to consider:

1. No Income Guarantees – When you work a job you are guaranteed a specific salary for as long as you continue to work in that position. As a home business owner, there are no guarantees. Your income is dependent completely upon your ability to go out and find customers and/or clients. Some business owners struggle and are unable to generate income for weeks, even months!

2. No Paid Time Off Or Benefits – Most jobs also come with benefits, such as time off, health insurance and other benefits. None of these benefits are included for business owners. If you want these benefits, you have to generate enough income for your business so that you can pay for these benefits yourself!

3. Typically Requires An Initial Investment – Practically every business that you can start requires some type of initial financial investment to get started. With most jobs you don’t have to make an investment to start working on the job.

4. Endless Amount Of Work – As a business owner there is ALWAYS something that you could be doing to build your business. Because of this, it can be a tremendous challenge to identify the best way to prioritize your tasks and responsibilities. There is also the temptation to spend all of your time working in your business to the detriment of other areas of your life if you aren’t careful.

Make sure that before you start your business that you are aware of the benefits and disadvantages.

Tips To Get Your Home Business Started Right

Once you are ready to start your business, there are several steps that you will need to take to get it up and running. We will be covering many of these steps in future lessons. In the meantime, here are some quick tips to help you get your business started right.

1. Make Sure Your Immediate Family Knows What You Are Doing – You should sit down with your immediate family and make sure they are aware of what you are doing and why. This is especially important if you are married. Your spouse can be one of the biggest assets to your business or can be one of the biggest hindrances. Engage them early in the process so that there are no problems later on.

2. Decide If You Want To Offer A Product Or Service – One of the first steps in implementing a business is deciding what type of business you want to start. There are a lot of options available to you. However, regardless of which option you select, it all comes down to whether you are going to be offering a product or offering a service.

A product is something that your customers actually purchase from you. Typically, there are two ways in which you are able to sell products to your customers. The first way is to manufacture the product yourself. This means that you are responsible for creating the product. Once the product is created, you then sell the product to your customer.

The second way that you can sell products is to purchase the product from another company. The company you purchases from either manufactures the product or acquires the product. You in turn purchase the product from that company at a wholesale price because you are buying it in bulk. You then turn around and sell that product at a retail price to your customer. The difference in price is your profit.

If you are offering a service, this is where you actually do something for the client in return for income. In service based businesses, you will need to do one of two things. The first option is if you have the skills necessary to perform the service yourself, you can provide the service to your clients. The second option is you can hire someone to provide the services, charge the client more than what you pay them and keep the difference.

3. Make Sure You Don’t Neglect Your Research – Many businesses fail simply because the person who started the business failed to do the necessary research. There are a number of areas to getting started in a home business that you need to research in order to be able to build an effective business.

You should first off, research the business model that you are considering. Is it a strong business model with prospects of increased growth? It would be a mistake to start a business selling cassette tapes in most cases because the majority of the population listens to audio either digitally or on compact disks.

You should research how much it truly costs to get the business started. Many businesses fail simply because they underestimate the financial requirements necessary to get the business up and running successfully. Spend time identifying what your projected costs are and how long it will take before you get the business profitable. Make sure you have another income source or enough money set aside to cover the expenses of the business before it starts to make money on its own.

By taking the time to get your home business started right, you set yourself up to build a strong foundation for a successful business.

This Lesson’s Action Steps

1. Review the questions asked by the United States Small Business Administration. Make sure you can answer those questions affirmatively. If not, it may not be the right time for you to start a business at this time.

2. Review the benefits of starting a business and identify some specific reasons for why you want to start a business. Review the disadvantages. Are the benefits and your specific reasons for starting a business worth dealing with the challenges that the disadvantages present? If not, it may not be the right time for you to start a business.

3. Begin researching some ideas for businesses you can start. Think about whether you want to offer a product or offer a service.