Do I Have What It Takes?
For many people, the first foray into the business world begins at home
conducting a work at home business. A very low-risk way to begin a
home based business is as a part-time job while you continue to work as a
paid employee at your regular job. By doing so, you can build
your business at your own pace and tailor it to suit your own financial
needs and time constraints. Should you discover that you cannot or do not
want to devote more time to your home based business, you can restrict its
growth to merely provide a supplemental income, curtail it (provided you
have fulfilled all contractual obligations you have entered into), or
perhaps even sell it to another aspiring entrepreneur.
On the other hand, you may be seeking to begin a business as a full-time
occupation. You can still do so from home. A few of the benefits of
conducting a work at home business are:
- No daily commute
- Flexible hours
- No fixed expenses associated with office rental
- You can enlist your family as “employees”
- You can take time off to fulfill personal obligations
Of course, there are drawbacks as well. Two of the biggest disadvantages
of conducting a home based business are the difficulty in separating
business and family obligations and the necessity to convince family
members that you really are working and cannot be disturbed during
business hours. Perhaps the most significant drawback of
all is that an income stream cannot be generated overnight; long
lead times are generally required before an income equivalent to that you
are used to seeing as a paid employee can be realized in a home based
business. In the interim, financial discomfort and psychological stress
can become intense, especially if you are dipping into savings to fund
your new venture.
Therefore, before starting a home based business, you should ask yourself
five up-front questions:
- What is my goal in starting a home based business? (In
this context, “To make money,” is not a valid
goal.)
- Is the business venture I am about to embark upon something I will
enjoy doing?
- Will I have the emotional and psychological support of my family
to draw upon when times get hard?
- Do I have the resources necessary, or can I readily obtain them,
in order to accomplish my goal?
- Am I a self-starter and a self-motivator?
If you can readily define your goal and answer, “Yes!” to the
remaining four questions, then you have what it takes to establish a
home based business. See the Home Based Business SiteMap below for
work at home business resources available to you. You may also want to
visit the Small Business Aid website for additional
work at home tips and resources.
Authored by Kenneth L. Anderson.
Original article published prior to 13 April 2003, updated
11 January 2006.
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