Home Busines

by


Suzanne Rothman

REALIZING YOUR DREAMS:
RUNNING A SUCCESSFUL HOME BUSINESS by Suzanne Rothman

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With the advent of home computing, more and more industrious and innovative people are giving up commuting, and working from home. How exciting and enticing it is for all to us to see not only more and more entrepreneurs joining the ranks of the self-employed, but also the myriad of opportunities available. The career options available are vast and limited only by our imaginations.

What separates the successful home business owner from the unsuccessful? What strategies do some employ to make their self-employment self-sufficient? What the secrets of success?

So many industrious people now dream of entering what is viewed as the "ideal" work scenario, but is this for you? Many of us have professions that lend themselves well to home businesses. Hence, we don't need to toil over what TYPE of business best suits us.

Many, however, have less obvious talents and skills, yet no less obvious or realistic dreams of operating a home business. How do those people decide what type of business they should operate?

This series of articles will address the following:

1. Who should consider working from home;
2. Utilizing our strongest professional assets to maximize our asset base (i.e. deciding what type of business to operate).
3. Assessing start-up (or operational) costs;
4. Pricing your service (particularly if you are consulting rather than selling a concrete product).
5. Effective marketing tools.
6. Purchasing equipment (hardware and software) and making prudent initial purchasing decisions.
7. Personal motivation and drive, and how to cope with the isolation of working alone at home.

Who Should Consider Working From Home?
All of us at one point or another dream of leaving the rat race and working from home. How could we not? The temptation of working in a pair of sweats, not fighting traffic or running for a bus, and not having to deal with our onerous boss is a dream come true, right? Well, maybe! Our personality dictates whether we can succeed working as our own boss. Motivation and a drive to succeed are essential elements to success. The challenge of meeting deadlines and not procrastinating when we don't have someone looking over our shoulders should not be under-stated.

If you can set personal goals and meet them, if you are an independent perfectionist, if your professional drive is sharper than your need for a vacation, you may be just the person to succeed!

If, however, nothing gets done unless someone is looking over your shoulder, don't give up your day job. If the need to throw a load of laundry in the machine is more compelling to you than spending an hour on marketing your business, working from home may not be for you. If you can structure your day to accomplish all your goals, and still find time for the PTA meeting and walking the dog, read on!

There are many people who thrive on person-to-person contact and do not work well alone. Working alone at home offers special challenges that are often overlooked in the zeal to be self-employed. While each business is different, and some home-based operations are not as isolating as others, this, too, should be considered before embarking on this challenging yet fulfilling enterprise.

The next article in this series shall be:
Utilizing our strongest professional assets to maximize our asset base (i.e. deciding what type of business to operate).

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Suzanne has vast experience in public and media relations, the essentials of operating successful consulting businesses, computer software (particularly word processing software), marketing, office equipment, and meeting the challenges of balancing home life/children/family while running a successful business.

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