WHY BE UNEMPLOYED

How do I Start a Home Based Business?

2007-04-13T08:47:00.000-07:00

Home Business
(featured column)

How do I Start a Home Based Business?
by Elena Fawkner

Elena is a regular feature in our monthly Blessings for Life online magazine, her home business tips are wonderful. With many of our readers finding themselves unemployed right now, I thought this article on making money from home would be helpful.

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From time to time (at least once a day actually) I'll get an impossible-to-respond-to email that says something like, "How can I work from home?", or "I want to start my own home business. Please send info." or even, "Please send free info.". Naturally such vague, generalized requests are not, for reasons of time (among others), going to elicit a particularly helpful response but it does exemplify the mindset of a proportion of my site visitors - they think they want to start a home business but where on earth do they start?

HOW DO I START A HOME BUSINESS?

The best advice I can give to someone who asks a question as vague as this is that they're asking the wrong question. The first question they should be asking themselves is: "SHOULD I start a home business?", not HOW do they do so.

The person who asks how to start a home business has not given much, if any, thought to what they might do as such a business (otherwise, their question would be "How do I start an errand service home business?" or "How do I start a gourmet gift basket home business?").

So, first things first. Why do you want to start a home business? What are the advantages as you see them? What are the disadvantages? What entrepreneurial qualities do you bring to the table that make you think you could make a success of your own business? What is your plan? What product or service will you market? Who are your customers? When will you give up your day job? Are you thinking about this because you just LOST your day job (if so, warning bells should be ringing very loudly!)? A home business is most definitely NOT for everyone and it's certainly not a solution to unemployment per se.

There are financial considerations too, obviously. How will you support yourself until you generate a profit? Where will you obtain financing?

Assuming you work your way through the above considerations and conclude that you do, indeed, want to start your own home business, then, and only then, should you ask "HOW do I start a home business?"

There are as many answers to this question as there are individuals who ask it. There is no one answer that fits all sizes. Generally speaking, however, the process of starting one's own home business can be broken down into seven broad steps.

=> IDENTIFY YOUR PASSIONS

If you're truly starting at ground zero and you don't already do something on the side that you'd kind of like to see if you could make fly, your first step is to decide what it is you'd like to do as your business.

I'm a firm believer in following your passion, whether that be for gardening (start a herb and spice business or cultivate cuttings for distribution via mail order), lead- lighting (design and create stained glass lampshades), accounting (run a home-based small business accountancy service) or website design. It doesn't matter whether other people are equally as passionate about what you're passionate about. It's YOUR passion that counts and it's YOUR passion that will propel you towards success. Do something you love to do in other words. Make your work your joy and you won't be able to help but succeed.

=> IDENTIFY A NICHE MARKET FOR YOUR PASSION

Now, it's one thing to know what you're passionate about, it's quite another to identify an unmet need in that field. But that's what you must do if you want to turn your passion into a truly profitable business venture. Identifying your niche is a pretty straightforward process:

1. Identify your general category and sub-category

Let's say your general passion is gardening. Gardening is your general category. Let's also say that you're particularly interested in growing herbs and how they can be used for cooking and medicinal purposes. Herb growing is your sub-category.

2. Hang out with people interested in your sub-category

In order to identify unmet needs in your sub-category (step 3.), you must find out from people interested in your sub-category what they're looking for that they can't find. A good way to find out is to hang out where they hang out - offline and on. Offline, you may belong to a local gardening club or cooking class at which you hear that so-and-so has been looking high and low for a certain type of specialty herb that isn't commonly grown in your country. Online, you may sign up for mailing lists and hang out in newsgroups to listen to what people are asking time and again.

3. Identify unmet or under-met needs in your sub-category

If you follow step 2, chances are, if you hear the same things repeatedly, you've found potential unmet needs or needs that aren't being adequately serviced by your competition. After all, if the need is being met, it won't be the subject of repeated questions.

4. Inventory your experience, interests and competencies

In order to decide what to focus on in particular out of a group of potential unmet or under-met needs, take account of your experience, interests and competencies. People are generally good at what they enjoy and are interested in, after all.

5. Fill the unmet or under-met need

Once you've identified the unmet need(s) in your sub-category, you can start thinking about how your business can fill that unmet need.

=> SURVEY THE MARKET AND YOUR COMPETITION

At this stage, you need to take your business idea and survey your niche market and your competition.

If you have competition, can you be better? If your market is dominated by a few large, well-established players and you really don't bring anything new or different to the table, then the competition is probably going to be too stiff. On the other hand, if that competition is focused on the high end of the market leaving the lower end largely uncatered for, then this could well be an excellent niche for you.

The bottom line is to identify your best competition in your niche and decide whether you can be better.

Only if you believe you can be the best in your niche should you proceed. If not, keep looking until you find a niche perfectly suited to your particular blend of experience, interests and competencies in which you can be the absolute best.

=> BUSINESS PLAN

Once you've identified your niche and surveyed your market and competition and are reasonably confident you can be at least as good as your best competitor, it's time to get down to brass tacks.

This is where you take your business idea and shape it into a battle plan. Formulating a business plan is goal-setting for your business.

Once you've thought through and recorded your business plan you should have an extremely thorough understanding of your industry and the challenges you must overcome to make a success of your business. Take your business plan and establish objectives, goals (which support attainment of the objectives) and tasks (which support attainment of the goals).

Put your tasks and goals into action to achieve your objectives. Decide where you want your business to be in five years time and work backwards until you have 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 year objectives and goals to support them and tasks to support the goals. The end result should be a daily to-do list of things that will directly lead you closer to the achievement of your goals and objectives.

=> ACTION

Once you have your daily to-do list, DO IT! The best laid plans of mice and men are useless if not translated into action. It's action that will propel you and your business towards success. Mere thoughts and plans are necessary but insufficient. They must be translated into activity.

=> TRANSITION

If possible, transition from whatever you're doing now into your business. Test the waters, in other words. If you're currently in a paid job, stay there and run your business part-time, taking the risk on someone else's nickel until you can be confident this thing's going to float. Know when you're better off devoting your full time and attention to your business (i.e., know when an hour of your time is worth more when spent invested in your business than your job) for that is the time to shift into full-time entrepreneurship.

=> MAKING THE LEAP

Finally, make the leap with faith and courage. Sure, you'll have moments of self-doubt, thoughts of "can I do this?" when you're wondering where the next order's going to come from and you think back to the nice, safe, secure paycheck you used to be able to count on in your job. But recognize these insecurities for what they are. They are your mind playing tricks on you. You can do anything you set your mind to. You just have to want it badly enough. So, when the time comes to make the leap, do it and hold nothing back. Your success or failure is up to you alone. There are no excuses.

So, in answer to the question "how do I start my own home business?", it's quite simple really. You do what it takes.

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Opening Your First Restaurant.

2007-04-07T05:38:00.002-07:00

Opening Your First Restaurant.

Talk about a difficult endeavor. Opening your first restaurant is not an easy achievement. Normally the process takes a year or more after you decide to go for it. And the planning involved is immense! You have to get a business license, sign a lease agreement for your building, equipment to buy, contracts with food providers, employees to hire, advertising, . .

The list goes on and on!But you continue on. Why? Obviously it is not the documented numbers for success. Some of those numbers say you have a 90% failure rate. But no worries, you’ve got something more to offer. This is your dream, and no analyst, or dumb numbers will take it away from you.And you know what? You’re right! Any number that is published is still just a number, and numbers do not know passion. And hell, even if those numbers do hold out, you still did something to try to achieve your dream.

Most people just think about it, but you’re doing it!Even so, no matter how much you want your dreams of owning a successful restaurant to come true, they will not unless you work hard for it. Yes, sorry, but it is true. You have to work very hard for it. Really, really hard. I don’t think I can emphasize it enough, you have to work hard (times a googol) to fulfill your dream.The following are three lessons I believe are the most important to make your new restaurant a success:

1. Don’t Let Them Come to You – Go To ThemSome new restaurant owners think that if they open a restaurant, people will magically find out about it and will instantly become regulars. Sorry, but it just doesn't happen like that. You WILL become the most popular restaurant in the area, but only if you work at it. You have to market! Tell everybody you can when you get a chance. Random people in the supermarket, down time during your oil change, standing in line at the bank.

Hand out flyers, get on the web. PR helps a lot too! You should spend half of your time or less in the restaurant overseeing the operations. The rest of your time should be spent on getting people into your restaurant.

2. Give it timeEvery business takes time to create. Even names like Wal-Mart, IBM and Krispy Kreme took time to get going (did you know Krispy Kreme opened in 1937? And you started of hearing of them when?) Be patient, and make sure you have enough equity to keep you going for at least 2-3 years.

3. When the Cat’s Away, the Mice Will PlayOpening Your First RestaurantTalk about a difficult endeavor. Opening your first restaurant is not an easy achievement. Normally the process takes a year or more after you decide to go for it. And the planning involved is immense! You have to get a business license, sign a lease agreement for your building, equipment to buy, contracts with food providers, employees to hire, advertising, . .

The list goes on and on!But you continue on. Why? Obviously it is not the documented numbers for success. Some of those numbers say you have a 90% failure rate. But no worries, you’ve got something more to offer. This is your dream, and no analyst, or dumb numbers will take it away from you.And you know what? You’re right! Any number that is published is still just a number, and numbers do not know passion. And hell, even if those numbers do hold out, you still did something to try to achieve your dream.

Most people just think about it, but you’re doing it!Even so, no matter how much you want your dreams of owning a successful restaurant to come true, they will not unless you work hard for it.

Yes, sorry, but it is true. You have to work very hard for it. Really, really hard. I don’t think I can emphasize it enough, you have to work hard (times a googol) to fulfill your dream.The following are three lessons I believe are the most important to make your new restaurant a success:

1. Don’t Let Them Come to You – Go To ThemSome new restaurant owners think that if they open a restaurant, people will magically find out about it and will instantly become regulars. Sorry, but it just doesn't happen like that. You WILL become the most popular restaurant in the area, but only if you work at it. You have to market! Tell everybody you can when you get a chance. Random people in the supermarket, down time during your oil change, standing in line at the bank. Hand out flyers, get on the web. PR helps a lot too! You should spend half of your time or less in the restaurant overseeing the operations. The rest of your time should be spent on getting people into your restaurant.

2. Give it timeEvery business takes time to create. Even names like Wal-Mart, IBM and Krispy Kreme took time to get going (did you know Krispy Kreme opened in 1937? And you started of hearing of them when?) Be patient, and make sure you have enough equity to keep you going for at least 2-3 years.

3. When the Cat’s Away, the Mice Will PlayEven though you will be exhausted working the marketing/business portion of your restaurant, you must still spend a lot of your time inside you restaurant. You are the most passionate person about the restaurant. In truth, you are the only one that really cares if it is a success! Just being around embarks additional excitement in not only your help, but your customers. If you think your restaurant runs the same when you are there compared to when you are not, you are very, very wrong.

If you have learned anything from this article, I hope it’s that you can do it . . .but only if you want to work for it. Congratulations, and best of luck (read: luck = really hard work) on your successes!Even though you will be exhausted working the marketing/business portion of your restaurant, you must still spend a lot of your time inside you restaurant.

You are the most passionate person about the restaurant. In truth, you are the only one that really cares if it is a success! Just being around embarks additional excitement in not only your help, but your customers. If you think your restaurant runs the same when you are there compared to when you are not, you are very, very wrong.

If you have learned anything from this article, I hope it’s that you can do it . . .but only if you want to work for it. Congratulations, and best of luck (read: luck = really hard work) on your successes!

Home Based Business Opportunity

2007-04-07T05:38:00.001-07:00

Home Business Opportunity

If you're anything like me and you've always wanted to generateBIG money online, then read on, because this could be the'life-changing email' you've been waiting for.Have you ever heard of these programs before? Coastal Vacations,Emerald, PI or Predator.

If you've ever been a member of any ofthose programs, then you'll know like I do just how HARD it isto get new signups. It's a continual struggle and very frustrating.I know why. You see, programs like those cost too much to join and they're priced way too high for the average person to buy letalone for someone to sell.

I've tried them all myself first-hand and been disappointed.After being in those types of programs, I learned how to market well.And when you're marketing something that's a 'hard sell', you'll learn how to persevere, what works and what doesn't.Now I've found something that works. And it works extremely well.Take a look at my site here:=>> http://www.myezcashcow.com

This system works so well, I became the top money earner in just30 days flat. Quite an achievement they think... but not as faras I'm concerned! I've been in the hard-to-sell programs andcompared to them, this one is EASY to get new signups for.Why? Because of the powerful system. You just can't go wrong.

You can earn an income to infinity, which will keep you going for years and years to come! Imagine the security to your family.The best part is, it's free to join and you can signup, login and take a good look around before you ever pay a single cent.

I like that and you will too [firstname]. They've got nothing tohide... In fact, you can even call the owners on the phone andspeak to them personally. That's not something you come acrossevery day right?Right now, I'm earning ~$60,000/mth and it's increasing everymonth.

Yes that's terrific for me -- it gives me all kinds offreedom and allows me to make choices I could never make when Ifirst started out online...But what good is that for you?Well I was where you are right now once. I started from humblebeginnings just like you. So I'm prepared to use my know-how tohelp you succeed... QUICKLY.[firstname], how would you like to short-cut your journey andstep on board with me to guide you? I can show you the ropes soto speak.

Well it's not a ship, but let's think of it as a vesselto take you to where you want to go much faster than you everthought possible. Think of those dreams you want to come true.I'll teach you how to flood your site with prospects and make iteasy for them to signup under you. How? Simply by offering threedifferent solutions to choose from.

Make sense? You bet it does-- and it truly works wonders every single time.Take a close look at my site to see the three solutions thatI'm offering you now. There's one for every type of person andsituation - and you can be making money yourself from thesesolutions in no time at all. It's very straightforward and simple.The next step is to join the one that best suits you and I'llsee you on the inside.

Starting a Small Home Business

2007-04-07T05:38:00.000-07:00

If you are totally satisfied with your work and financial situation, chances are you own your own Home Based Business. If you're not experiencing the freedom and financial security maybe you should be starting a small home business.It's a fact that only 3% of the population is able to obtain real success.

The sad part of this statistic is the fact that 97% of the population will not. But what is even worse is the fact that with some effort, not a huge effort, you can be part of that successful 3%.One of the easiest and best ways in starting a small home business is to develop it on the Internet. It is the world's number one source of selling and you should take full advantage of this phenomenon. With this new technology you can have a very successful business working from your home.Affiliate marketing is an excellent way to earn money while at home. There are virtually no production costs.

The product is already developed and proven by the merchant, and all you have to do to find, as many prospects as you can that will bring in the profit for both the merchant and the affiliate.A business using affiliate marketing is not that hard now with the Internet at your disposable. Starting a small home business is much easier now compared to the days when people have to make use of the telephones and other mediums of information just to get the latest updates on the way their program is coming along.

Another plus of on the affiliate program side is when you are starting a small home business is that you don't have to do any personal selling, carry inventory, ship the product, or handle customer service, which at times can be a real headache. The key to being a good affiliate is learning the skills of good advertising and promotion techniques.

The system involved in affiliate marketing seems easy, but it also takes a lot of diligence and perseverance for one to be able to work the business thoroughly. Those who want to start a small home business should possess the necessary skills to be able work through the industry with confidence and self-assurance.

Still, other factors are needed by one to be able to really break in. Knowledge about the business at hand is very important as it dictates the actions that are to be done by people who are into it.