How To Start Your Own Profitable Home-Based Computer Business

Anyone who owns a computer has the means to earn a sizable full-time income from the comfort and privacy of his/her own home. That's because, practically anything you can do for yourself on a computer, you can also do for someone else -- for money! Therefore, the hundreds of services which can be provided with a computer present the opportunity of a lifetime to achieve independence and financial security. Of course, starting your own home based computer business will require careful thought and planning. Some services are more feasible than others and you'll need to be as certain as possible that there is a demand for the services you intend to offer. The first thing to consider when picking a computer service to offer are what you do best and what you enjoy doing. You'll need to be certain you are capable of providing a quality service.

After all, your success will largely depend on the quality of your work. Therefore, you should stay away from offering those services for which you are not qualified.

After you decide on what service(s) you want to offer, there are several other factors to consider before taking the big step of actually starting up. The first of those factors is profit potential, or how much income you can reasonably expect. The particular service(s) you provide and your own personal initiative have a lot to do with how much money you can make, but you should also be aware that service business income can be limited by the number of hours you can realistically work each week.

It may be difficult to bill more than 30 hours a week when you are not only doing all of the work, but you are also "soliciting" work, running the business, and keeping your own books and records. With that in mind, it's usually a good idea to try to provide services for which the hourly fee is high. Of course, once you've established a sound reputation, you can also begin taking in more work than you can handle alone. This extra work can be subcontracted out, and your total income increased.

The next consideration is what kind of demand there is for the service(s) you plan to offer. This will require some basic market research on your part. Find out for yourself, as best you can, just how many people there are who are interested in your proposed service, and would be willing to pay a "fair" price for it. It's important that you be able to define your market and pin-point your customers.

Once you've conducted 2 to 3 months of market research and, to your satisfaction, feel that there is indeed a potentially profitable market for your services, your next step should be toward "fleshing out" your overall business plan. Your business plan should outline how much capital you will need as a start-up investment, monthly operating expenses and procedures, an advertising plan, and a detailed breakdown of your work schedule.

The success of your computer business will come a lot more easily if you have a specific and detailed plan before you actually start up. Too many home-based businesses fail because their operators "jumped in" before they understood that the costs involved and the time required were beyond their means and abilities. If you have everything down on paper before you start, you have a much better chance for success.

You should also have a good idea of how well your business will do in especially tough economic times. In order to achieve long-term success, your business will need to be one that provides economic security even during periods of recession. It's essential that the computer service(s) you plan to offer will have a stable demand throughout any type of economic conditions and, in fact, have a good growth potential.

After all these considerations, before you start your business, you must be certain that you have the capital and time to sustain your business throughout the first six to twelve months of operation. In order for your business to be profitable, your living expenses must not come out of your business until it is on solid financial ground. And that usually takes 6 months to a year. Generally, once you have been in operation for 9 months, you can start giving yourself a monthly salary. Until that time, all the money you make from your service, should be re-invested in your business so it will grow and reach its planned profit potential.

Obviously, no one home-based computer business will excel in all the areas described in this report. That's why choosing the business that is best for you may require finding one that is the most desirable in light of the importance of factors such as what you are qualified to do, what you would enjoy doing, profit potential, demand, capital required to start-up, and resistance to low economic cycles. And, as mentioned before, there are hundreds of such computer services from which to choose.

Some of the more standard home-based computer businesses include desktop publishing, tax preparation, resume writing, word processing, and freelance writing. Starting up any of those services is relatively easy. As long as you already have the necessary computer and equipment, your biggest expense will most likely be in advertising your service. Once you have your market targeted and you know who your customers are going to be, you'll need to determine exactly how you are going to reach them. In general, your most effective advertising for computer-based services will come from classified or display ads in national magazines, and less frequently, newspaper ads.

Some other computer-based businesses that currently present viable long-term opportunities include computer consulting, mailing-list service, medical-billing service, collection agency, and a brokerage service. All of these businesses have excellent income potential, good-to-high demand, good resistance to recessionary periods, good-to-excellent growth potential, and relatively modest start-up costs. While a medical billing service requires a special knowledge, the other businesses listed above have only moderate qualification requirements.

You may also want to investigate the possibility of some other relatively new computer-based businesses such as desktop video production, an export agency, a medical transcription service, real estate appraisal service, and a temporary-help service. All of these services are experiencing increased demand, and present home-based entrepreneurs with above average profit potential.

Whatever computer service(s) you decide to offer, you'll need to have your business plan properly organized before you begin. Once you've implemented and followed your plan for about one year, you may be able to consider hiring other people to take over at least part of your workload. Of course, that decision will be entirely up to you. Operating your own home-based computer business should ultimately give you the independence and the financial security that will enable you to choose between running the entire operation and doing all the work yourself, or hiring other people to do the work for you while you relax and collect a regular income from your original investment.

Depending on the type of computer service(s) you offer, you can realistically expect to make an annual income of $20,000 to $100,000 and more. Your desire and initiative will go a long way in determining just how much profit you make. The opportunities for success in operating a home-based computer service are expanding every day. Any enterprising person who has a computer and who is willing to do the necessary research and planning, can achieve success and financial security with a home-based computer service.

How to Build An Internet Home Based Business

There are many advantages to building a home based business, from having the time to pursue other life goals, to having more time with your family, it is no wonder that this is the aspiration of many a working class individual. Beginning a whole new career is often ruled out as a risky alternative due
to the immense preparation involved. However it is very difficult to know what path to follow with all the scams on the internet promising users that they can get rich quick. Therefore it is important to find legitimate opportunities that don't require the spending of copious amounts of money without seeing
a high return on the investment. It is worthy to note that there are many legitimate opportunities out there, a person just needs to know where to look.

If you are looking to avoid being scammed one way to protect yourself is to contact the company
involved directly. If you are looking for opportunities on a job board, in a newspaper or on random websites you may not always find the most reputable companies. By getting in touch with a
company or the person involved you have a higher chance that you will find that reputable company and get the full development needed in order for you to become successful. All this can
happen without you having to invest huge amounts, ultimately if a company is advertising online it is really in their best interest that you are successful.

Let us now look at what is needed for you to sell your own merchandise or products. Firstly
there is a little bit more time and money involved in this process. Also aside from having to create your own product, you will have to create your own website. Costs can quickly rise as
well if you are unsure of exactly what you are doing. To do everything on your own and then learn to run a blog, swap links, and distribute a monthly newsletter can become extremely time
consuming and difficult to juggle. A common begginer mistake is also using a free web host to start of, you must be aware that doing this will only harm your business. Ultimately this opens
up avenues of free advertising on your website which will divert traffic on your site from its ultimate objective- to make a sale! How else are these free hosts meant to stay alive! If not
just for free advertising, your domain name might have the hosts names as a part of your address. Not the best way to start building a brand! Dont also forget to consider that the host may
even close down your site if it feels that it is not earning enough through its advertising on your site.

The capitol required to be invested in your endevour will really depend on the type of business you undertake and the advertising methods that you choose to employ and of course how much you want to earn. Obviously spending more does give you a greater potential to earn more but there are methods that you can utilize to substitute your time instead of your money. It is always advisable to start of slow and discover all methods, time and money related thereby alowing yourself to keep a higher net
income from the overall earnings. It is also noteworthy that the startup period of any business is always the most expensive.

Once you have taken the leap and began your new marketing campaign, an open mind is necessary to adjust methods that you feel are not as effective. You may even find that you need to try several different markets before finding that profitable market that will pay you huge dividends. This is the
risk of starting your home business. However making that commitment in time and effort will see your business become successful. All you need is constant market research, an evolving marketing campaign, determination and the interest of your consumers at heart. This will see you through to becoming a successful home based business owner.

About the Author:

Muneer Al-Busaidi is a successful internet marketer and has found success with Success University. Learn more about this AS SEEN ON TV turn key business opportunity and development program by visiting: http://www.MoneyTimeSecurity.com/opportunity.html or read more articles related to money freedom, time freedom and income security on the blog: http://blog.moneytimesecurity.com

36 Ways To Make Money With a Telephone

The telephone is truly a remarkable invention. It is probably the world's greatest time-saver. It plays an important and necessary role in almost every business, no matter how large or small.

The telephone can also become your "business partner". By realizing its capabilities and potential, the efficient use of this little device can help assist anyone in operating a profitable business. A business that can help the goal of most

Americans: financial independence. All that is required are knowledge, persistence, patience and of course, a telephone. Previous experience in the use of a phone for business purposes is helpful but not necessary. There are no age limits for starting such a business. Sex or race is not a barrier. Location is unimportant, as long as you have a phone.. Your home can be your "office" if you wish and you are your own boss. And in most instances, you can name your own working hours.

There are two methods for charging for your telephone services - by "subscription" and by working on a commission". Rates to charge are not given because wages vary from place to place and change time to time.

The first group of possibilities for earning is by signing up "subscribers". You then establish a weekly, monthly, or yearly rate for your services. If there already are similar services in your community, you should charge slightly less than your competition when first starting your business. If no such service exists, compute your rates by including your time, amount of work involved and expenses, which will consist mainly of the cost of out-going phone calls. Many will be happy to pay handsomely for your service.

"WAKE-UP " SERVICE. Some find if difficult to get out of bed and ready for work when the alarm clock rings. An unusual service is to phone these subscribers at a pre-arranged time each work day morning. If they must walk to another part of their home to answer the phone, they are certain to become fully awake. A good method to get such a service started is by advertising that you will offer a free weeks trail of service for such sleepy heads. "REMINDER" SERVICE. Busy homemakers as well as overworked executives are fearful of forgetting important dates such as birthdays, anniversaries, business appointments, etc. By making notes on an ordinary calendar, you can phone several days in advance to remind them of the important occasion. Some subscribers will want to be listed for only 10 or 15 calls a year, while some businesses will have a 100 or more such dates. Your rates should be based on the number of "reminder" calls for a given period.

SERVICE FOR SHUT-INS.

Some concerned persons wish to keep informed as to the health and condition of relatives, friends and neighbors. These are generally those people that live alone and may be ill, invalids, senior citizens and such. You will be required to phone these people at pre-arranged times (usually once or twice a day), to check if all is well. If there is some of emergency or no response to your call, you should immediately notify the subscriber. There are those that will pay a good price for such service simply for their own "peace of mind".

BABY SITTING SERVICE.

This is a matter of providing a baby-sitter on a moments notice. To get a list of available baby sitters, place small signs on bulletin boards in local high schools and colleges and keep this list of names handy.. Advertise this service in local newspapers to get subscribers. When calls come in, send the nearest baby sitter. The employer pays for the sitter's time and generally, the cost of transportation.

SECRETARIAL POOL.

Advertise throughout your community for part-time office help such as secretaries, typists, file clerks, etc., by placing signs on bulletin boards. Charge a small subscription fee for specified period- usually 6 months or 1 year. Then contact prospective employers by phone or by sending notices announcing your service. When you receive calls for part-time office helpers, it is then a matter of checking your list and finding the qualified workers to fill the part-time job requirements.

ESCORT SERVICE.

There are some women that are required to attend social and business functions, but may not have an escort to accompany them. To reach these subscribers, run ads in local newspapers and business publications such as "Escorts available for all occasions". To get a list of available escorts, run "Escorts wanted" classified ads. Establish a realistic hourly rate of pay for escorts, which should include their incidental expenses.

BUSINESS MEN'S "SHOPPING SERVICE".

Most busy executives do not have the time to do their personal shopping. They are in need of someone to do their buying for them, such gifts for their wife, family, secretary, business associates, etc. You can provide such a service. First, you will be required to spend some time visiting some of the most popular stores and shops in your area.. Make a list of items available that will make suitable gifts. Locate stores that provide free delivery service. (Or use a delivery service). Many larger department stores have a "shopping service", which you should use as much as possible for additional suggestions. and help.. In addition to charging a subscription fee, you can also send a monthly bill "services rendered", which is a small percentage of sales of items purchased.

EMPLOYMENT SERVICE FOR STUDENTS.

Many high school and college students need part-time jobs after school hours and on weekends. Charge these subscribers a monthly or quarterly fee. There are also businesses and some home owners who have need for part-time workers. Your duty will be to fill the needs of employers by sending the most qualified students for the jobs. To locate interested students, place signs on college and high school bulletin boards. To announce your service to prospective employers, run classified ads in local newspapers, and phone or mail circulars to various businesses. "CAR POOL" SERVICE. Many would rather pay a private car owner than take public transportation. Your job is simply a matter of matching "riders" with "drivers" going in the same general direction. Subscribers in this case pay you a one-time fee to locate suitable transportation for them. Other details are worked out between rider and driver. Place notices on bulletin boards and run classified ads for both "Drivers Wanted" and "Riders Wanted". Also advertise in company's house organs, newsletters, trade journals, etc.

HOME OWNER'S "VACATION SERVICE"

While away from home for extended periods, many property owners will gladly pay someone to water their lawn, flowers and shrubbery. Mow grass, sweep sidewalks, remove newspapers, collect mail, etc. Announce that your provide this service for a small fee on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. For workers, place signs on bulletin boards in high schools, colleges, YMCA, YWCA, churches, etc.

TELEPHONE ANSWERING SERVICE.

Operating a lucrative telephone answering service requires 7-day a week, around the clock attention. It could also require employing additional help and the installation of a switchboard, which can be leased for a modest monthly amount from the telephone company. Subscribers to such a service contact the phone company and make arrangements to have all calls automatically transferred to your number, in the event there is no response to their business or residence phone. Most subscribers will consist of professional people such as physicians, dentists, attorneys, business executives, etc. However, there will also be emergency-type service people such as electricians, plumbers, contractors, carpenters, heating unit specialists and service repair people of all types. While away from their telephone, subscribers will call you telling where they intend to be and can be reached. Thus, in case of an emergency, you will be able to locate them to relay messages. Successful business people realize the necessity of a telephone answering service and will readily pay substantial amounts for good, courteous, conscientious service. By getting several hundred subscribers, almost anyone can make a good living from this type of operation, as well as paying above-average salaries to 3 or 4 additional full-time employees. Subscription rates can be based on the number of calls anticipated per month or a flat fee. Check with competitive answering services in your vicinity for current rates. This type of service is best advertised in local newspapers and trade publications. Also by direct mail announcements to independent and self-employed professional persons.

PET "TRANSPORT" SERVICE.

Many pet owners do not have time to take their pets to various places for medical purposes, grooming, etc.

First, locate pet-lovers who have time and a vehicle at their disposal. Pay them on a "per mile" basis similar to a taxi cab. For pet owners that require this service, charge a fee, collect a commission from veterinarians, pet hospitals, grooming services, etc.

HOW TO WORK ON A "COMMISSION" BASIS

Using a telephone to earn money by working on a commission basis can also be profitable. However, a firm agreement must be reached in advance to the exact amount of commission you can expect - based either on a percentage basis or flat fee. To advertise any of these services, unless stated otherwise, use newspaper classified ads and/ or notice placed on bulletin boards throughout your community. Following are a number of good suggestions.

COLLECTION AGENCY.

Almost every business has outstanding debts. If you can convince debtors by phone that they should pay their bills, you can receive nice commissions. Some firms allow as much as 1/3 commission. Almost any company will be interested in your plan,,, since most will be happy to pay you a fee and receive some payment, than nothing at all.

APPLIANCE REPAIR SERVICE..

Contact local repair shops in your community and tell them you will "list" them free of charge for a commission on all business you send them. For those that are agreeable to your terms, find out which type of repair work they specialize in, such as TV sets, washers, etc. will call you and you can refer them to the proper repair shop. The store owner gets the extra business; you receive a commission, and it doesn't cost the customer anything extra. If pickup and deliver service is required, this should be added to the customer's bill by the store owner.

WINDOW WASHING SERVICE.

While it must be done several times a year, many find window washing a disagreeable task. Charge a fee, based on the number of windows to be washed. Also collect from the window washing service.

"HOUSE CLEANING" SERVICE.

Many home-owners and apartment dwellers will welcome help at "house cleaning" time. Charge a flat fee for the amount of work that must be done. Make arrangements with firms that provide workers for washing windows, cleaning carpets, washing walls, painting, etc. and collect a commission from all those you send extra business.

CATERING SERVICE.

Planning a large banquet or party is time consuming.. Last minute details can be extremely hectic, Most hostesses and/or hosts will welcome expert help. You can earn two ways by being of assistance. First, familiarize yourself will all services that may be needed by such social events. This includes places where you can rent chairs, dinnerware, silver, table decorations, linens, etc. Also,, where you can find attendants such as bartenders, waiters, musicians, etc. Also sources of catered meals, beverages, flowers, ice, entertainment, etc. By making a complete list, you will be able to provide a full service without leaving your phone. Collect a flat fee from the party-givers, based on the number of guests. Also collect a commission on all sales from firms that you recommend help cater the affair.

SELL PRODUCTS BY PHONE.

Many firms need phone salespeople to help sell items such as books,, magazines & newspapers subscriptions, encyclopedias, subscriptions to record clubs, etc. Most pay above average commissions. Some pay on a "per sale" basis; others pay a flat fee for making appointments for their salesmen to call on prospective customers, plus a commission on every sale. Watch for classified ads in newspapers and magazines under "HELP WANTED". Also contact local firms that may be interested in using your services.

SELL SERVICES BY PHONE.

Similar to above, but generally you can offer your services to local firms that sell "big ticket" items that home-owners would be interested in, such as roofing, painting, landscaping, water purification, insurance, remodeling and decorating services, etc. Since such services are so technical in nature, you will usually be paid a fee for each appointment you arrange for the salesmen, plus receive a commission on the final sale.

HOTEL/MOTEL RESERVATION SERVICE..

When a large convention comes to town, it is often difficult for many travelers to find accommodations. Contact hotels and motels in your area and explain that when they have an "overflow" of guests, they should contact you. By keeping in touch with as many hotels and motels as possible, you can reroute these quests to other available accommodations. Your commissions are collected from those establishments to which you send guests to fill their vacancies. "GIFT WRAPPING" SERVICE. While some stores provide a gift-wrap service, many do not. This is an ideal service at Christmas time, but also handy for other holidays and special occasions... To advertise this service,, have a neat signs printed giving your phone number.., and distribute all businesses that do not gift wrap. Then locate several persons interested in earning extra money wrapping gifts. You provide pick-up and delivery service and charge a fee, depending upon size of package and quantity. Pay your "wrappers" a commission for work done and you keep the rest.

SOLICIT FUNDS FOR CHARITIES.

Worthwhile charities need help in obtaining donations. Contact churches and such local organizations and offer your services for a commission on all such "pledges" you obtain.

SOLICIT FUNDS FOR POLITICAL GROUPS.

Political candidates are always looking for fund-raisers. Contact local political organizations and/or candidates and explain that you will help raise money on a commission basis.

TAKE TELEPHONE SURVEYS.

In larger cities, firms such as newspapers, radio & television stations, advertising agencies, etc. Occasionally need help in taking public opinion polls. Contact them and state that you are available when needed. Also look in your Yellow Pages under "SURVEY REPORTS". "HOUSING" SERVICE. By finding homes for tenants, you perform a valuable service for both landlords and tenants. Advertise that you have listings available for houses, apartments, flats, rooms, etc. You can either charge a one-time fee for finding accommodations or work on a commission. To get a list of available housing, contact apartment building operators, real estate agencies, guest houses. etc. Also watch "FOR RENT" classified ads. In some instances you will also be able to collect a commission from the property owner or landlord for suitable tenants that you locate.

24-HOUR "EMERGENCY" SERVICE.

To operate such a service, you will need a list of professional people who can be available around-the-clock, 7 days a week. This will include locksmiths, car-towing services, doctors, plumbers, electricians, TV repair personnel. building contractors, etc. When calls come in, your job will be to contact the proper emergency help required and send them where needed. You receive a commission for all business you send them.

"PET SITTING" SERVICE.

Rather than place their pets in strange and unfamiliar surroundings, many pet owners would prefer for someone to take care of them in their own home, while they are away. Students are ideal for this type of job. Pay them on a "per pet" basis and charge pet owners by the day or week for services rendered. This is similar to "plant sitting".

TRAVEL SERVICE.

The job of a travel agency is to provide assistance by making travel arrangements for individuals, couples, families and tours. Duties require making to and from travel reservations with airlines, buses, trains, steamships, etc., as well as accommodations. In addition to receiving substantial commissions, travel agencies also receive worthwhile benefits in the form of discount travel fares, reduced rates or free accommodations, etc. Investigate how other travel agencies operate in order to establish pricing structure for the various services you will offer.

"HANDY-MAN" SERVICE.

Contact businesses and individuals who are available for difficult and more strenuous jobs such as cleaning basements, moving, lawn care, preparing gardens for planting, painting, snow removal, small carpenter jobs, etc. Collect commissions from those you recommend to do these jobs for your customers.

"ENTERTAINMENT" RESERVATION SERVICE.

This type of service is designed for busy people who want to "spend a night on the town" but don't have the time to handle the many details. You will be required to make reservations for dinner, hotel and motel reservations, if necessary, etc. Also obtain tickets for theater, opera, concerts, ballet, etc. Charge customers a fee based on the amount of work involved. You can also collect commissions from many of the businesses you send your customers to.

"ERRAND" SERVICE.

Another helpful idea for busy working people, including homemakers. First, you will need a list of those of those available who have cars or vans to run errands, such as picking up and delivering everything from cleaning and laundry to young children. Contact students for these chores by placing signs on bulletin boards in colleges and high schools. They will be eager for such part-time work. Pay them on a hourly basis. Charge customers a fee for time involved and/or mileage.

"HARD-TO-FIND-ITEMS" SHOPPING SERVICE.

Many will gladly pay someone else to have them "let their fingers do the walking" in searching for difficult-to--locate items and services. Some jobs may be impossible, but for those orders that you can fill, you can collect a fee for time involved as well as commissions from merchants in your community that can be of assistance.

"PLANT-SITTING" SERVICE.

This service provides care for house plants (and outdoor plants, shrubbery, gardens, etc., if necessary), when people are away from home. Again, students can do these jobs. You charge customers a daily, weekly, or monthly fee based on the amount of work to be done.

"BIRTHDAY GREETING" SERVICE.

Since Western Union has discounted "singing telegrams" you can do this by phone. Voice isn't important. It's the thought that counts! May also adaptable for holidays and other personal occasions. Charge a one-time fee for this service.

"GROCERY SHOPPING" SERVICE.

This service is especially suitable for areas where grocery stores no longer make deliveries. When you build up a long customer list, suggest to store owners you receive a discount. Again, students are ideal for making deliveries. Charge customers a percentage of total sales as your commission.

"PERSONALIZED" SHOPPING SERVICE.

Similar to "Business Men's Shopping Service", but available to everyone. A good way to increase business is by operating on a 7-day-a-week basis.

BONUS TIPS: When speaking on the phone, always be courteous. Since the person you are talking to cannot see your face or read your lips, always speak slowly and clearly. Make calls as brief as possible, but don't appear "abrupt". Never allow your voice to show disappointment in not obtaining an order. Your prospective customer may be pleased with your initial call and think of you the next time he may be in need of your services. There are dozens of other ways to make money with a telephone. Study the Yellow Pages of your local directory and let your imagination run wild!

Make Money Working From The Comfort Of Your Own Home

How many times have you heard that phrase, pitch, advertisement, or whatever? Lots, I'm sure. It is used so much because marketers know that staying home and making money is the fondest dream of millions of people.

And why not? Did you know that the majority of fatal heart attacks happen at 9 a.m. Monday morning? It's true. It seems a lot of people would rather die than get back to the old grind after a weekend of freedom.

So when someone offers an opportunity or plan for you to take your job and shove it, yet still make enough money to live and pay all your bills, it sounds blissfully irresistible.

Of course, bliss and reality are always two different things. Is it really possible to run a business from your own home that is more than a hobby or source of part-time income? Can you get rich working out of your own home? Can you really trade your cubical and necktie for blue jeans and the comfort of your own den?

Well, for your information, home-based businesses are one of the fastest growing kinds of enterprises in America today. As this is being written, some 40 million Americans are doing at least some form of work out of their homes, and the numbers are rising rapidly. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, as many as 70 million people will be working out of their homes by the year 2005. Government studies have indicated that as much as 75% of all work done in this country could eventually be moved home.

The overwhelming majority of home workers, however, are not exactly getting rich. The average work-at-home American earns less than $15,000 per year. That may not be bad as a supplement to a spouse's full-time income, but let's face it, fifteen grand in and of itself is not much better than poverty.

As master marketer and author Dr. Jeffrey Lant said: "Frankly, I never saw any benefit to staying home and being poor."

Lant, without so much as a business card, became a work-at-home millionaire, and is a perfect example of what truly can be achieved if you are serious about chucking your day job, staying home, and not settling for peanuts in exchange for your freedom. You can have it all -- you can stay home and make as much -- and more -- money than your current job provides you.

In this report, we are going to outline and discuss five key rules on how to work at home and make big bucks, no matter where you live. After these five rules, we'll talk about the most important aspect of any business, whether it be home-based or a giant factory -- cash flow. Starting your own business out of your home is all about attitude and inspiration, but all the attitude in the world won't help you without money!

1. It Takes Commitment

Is it any secret in America that most people detest their jobs? Study after study proves that most people simply dread going to work Monday morning, and they live for the freedom of the weekend. But even that freedom is not pure because we know that it is only temporary. It's hard to enjoy a Sunday evening when the Monday morning alarm clock is just a few hours away.

It makes sense that people hate their jobs. Everyday, there is a lot of butt kissing that needs to be done. There are endless meetings which usually accomplish nothing. There are pointless interruptions, a lot of drifting this way and that, and lot of idiot supervisors who do nothing but waste your time and then dog you for not accomplishing your share of work. There are co-workers you hate, and who would stab you in the back in a minute if it meant a raise for them instead of you.

When you work for someone else, you live a regimented life. Your body may not want to get up at 7 a.m., but you have to be at work by 8 a.m. so you lurch out of bed with a head full of sleep.

People who choose to work at home are doing more than just escaping the yoke of their master; they have made a deep, firm, life-altering decision which says that health, happiness and prosperity depend vitally on the freedom to work for ourselves, and in doing so in the comfort of the home.

We want to really emphasize that fact that to be successful in a work-at-home situation, you have to be nothing less than a fanatic; a zealot, who is utterly committed to making work-at-home not only a successful venture, but a profound commitment for life. You must be convinced that a return to an outside office job would be the equivalent of a spiritual death sentence.

Many people hate their office jobs, but they have made an inner compromise with themselves. They have convinced themselves that their job is "not so bad," pays the bills, and that they can stick out because they have to.

If you want to be truly successful at quitting your day job, there cannot be any room for such compromises in your soul. You have to take the attitude that to work any longer at your hateful job is akin to fouling your inner being with a spiritual cancer the will sicken and kill you.

2. Eliminating the Home-Office Mentality

To move our work home, however, does not mean we eliminate every single thing about the traditional American office. Rather, we should select what is useful and what is not.

It's a mistake to quit your job and go home with a "home-office" mentality. By this we mean thinking small, and believing that you will automatically sacrifice a decent income in exchange for your freedom. Please! Do not think small!

To quote Jeffrey Lant again: "Too many home-based practitioners fail to understand the benefits that accrue because of the professional style they have selected. They focus on the "home" part of the business rather than the "business" portion, and as a result are doomed to small incomes." Working at home provides many benefits. We can save a lot of time because we don't need to commute and we have more control over our schedule. We can save a lot of costs because we don't have the overhead requirements of larger businesses. We can cut our stress -- and so have more energy -- because we avoid many of the characteristic problems of life in the late 20th-Century office. We must work these advantages to our profit.

3. Your International Headquarters

The German philosopher Immanuel Kant said that if you sit at home alone at your empty kitchen table, eventually, the "whole world will come to you."

Well, today you don't need the great mind of a philosopher to make the entire world come into your living room. What you need is a phone jack.

We live in a unique time in history. Satellites, fiber optics, the integrated circuit and other communications miracles means that you can be just about anywhere in the developed world and establish communication with anyone.

The telephone, the fax machine, the computer, the modem -- all of these are not only affordable by any middle-class citizen; they are the key to eliminating your need to drive a hectic freeway everyday to get to a place of business outside your home.

With these devices at our disposal, we should allow ourselves to "think globally." Too often, home-based businesses focus on the narrowest market, the neighborhood, the county, the city or state. This is fine if you are providing a local service and are content with a certain moderate level of income. But if you want the big bucks, you should not think small. Also, you should not believe that, just because you are home-based, you cannot compete with the big guys.

The purpose of any business is to seek assess and seek out every possible market for its products and services, to ascertain whether these markets have the ability to buy these products/services, to determine whether there is sufficient profit in these markets to warrant approaching them, and, once positive assessment has been made, to launch a sustained marketing campaign that gets a significant percentage of this market to purchase the product or service in question.

Your home telecommunications machines will not only enable you to do this, but they can also help you overwhelm larger, more cumbersome traditional businesses that are your competition.

As a home-based entrepreneur, you will not have all of the disadvantages of your more traditional competitors: no office rent, equipment or expense; no employees to pay salaries and fringe benefits for; no time wasted on meetings, employee problems, paid sick leave, etc.

All the money your competitors spend on heating the office and buying furniture could better be spent on the actual marketing itself.

As a home-based business, you will be already positioned where the traditional business is currently struggling to move: toward the lowest possible overhead and the greatest possible concentration of dollars on products/service development and product/service marketing.

So, a home-based business takes full advantage of three major goals of modern business success:

(1) Vastly reduced overhead (2) Easy access to a global market (3) Full advantage of telecommunications.

To not have the basic telecommunications toys -- computer, modem, fax, and telephones is impossibly stupid. Still, even in this day and age, many of people strongly resist the one element that is undoubtedly the heart and brain of any successful home business -- the computer. The computer is so important in fact, we have made it a category all itself.

And remember, learning to use a modern computer is easier than learning to drive a car, so you have no excuse not to plunge forward.

4. The Computer

You should pay close attention to what computers can do for you in your plans to escape your job and make your work-at-home dreams come true.

People who want to run a home business usually have a very small staff -- in fact, a staff of one -- yourself! The rest of your needs are handled by independent contractors, depending on the kind of business you are in and the services you need.

To run a serious, truly global home business, a computer is as necessary as oxygen is to life on earth. Those who try to fool themselves into thinking they will ever make a serious go of their home-based business without a computer are sadly mistaken.

Computers give you two primary advantages:

(1) They enable you to store large amounts of data and to sort by data field so that you can easily get the information you need.

(2) They enable you to develop a pattern document for every situation you'll ever be in in your business. To run a home-based business successfully, you must anticipate just what situation will emerge and prepare accordingly.

A business is based on a characteristic series of situations and a characteristic set of things that happen -- or that do not happen. You must be prepared with the proper document for each situation. Once you have established all the protocols, and have experienced all the situations associated with your kind of business, the time will come when running your business is, in large part, a repetition of certain key tasks. Computers are all about handling repetition swiftly and efficiently.

But the computer is much more. Today, by connecting a computer to the phone line with a modem, your machine becomes more than a data storage system and repetitive task handler. It becomes a multi-task, multi-level communications processing center that connects you to the globe.

Such things as e-mail, on-line services, the Internet, the Web and more can't help but revolutionize the way business is done. If you do not become a part of it today, you certainly are going to suffer for it greatly in the near future.

If there is an effective way to market products on the Internet or any other on-line venue, no one has truly discovered it yet. The only people making money on Internet marketing are the people who are selling the concept of doing it. If you have a product or a service and expect to reach millions of buyers through computer screens, you are sadly mistaken.

The Internet is definitely where a lot of innovative things are happening. It's a great place to exchange ideas, find out what hot, what's not, and stay on the cutting edge whatever your particular business is.

5. Your Business Hours

If you've been paying attention to the first four points, you're well on your way to becoming a successful home-based business owner. Now we don't want you to blow it by thinking you can keep banker's hours.

The global market is a 24-hour per day market, and a 365-day per year market. Let the others sleep late on Saturdays and take Sundays off. Those times could be your day to move and corner loads of customers that the others miss.

You should get up earlier and quit work later. You should be open for business on holidays and be available 24-hours a day either personally or through your answering service.

"But wait a minute!" you might be thinking at this point! "I thought that working at home was all about freedom and an end to drudgery. This sounds like nothing but endless work!"

Well, here's the thing. For most of you who quit your regular jobs to go to work for yourself, you'll discover something magical. You'll discover that when you are working for yourself, when you are building your own business, a lot of what you does not seem like work at all.

The great writer Jane Roberts said, "Inspiration is its own motivator."

Running your own business is all about being inspired 24-hours-a-day. When you stop selling your body and soul to some company or corporation and start giving your energy to yourself, work has a way of turning into inspiration and play.

The perfect work for you is that which you don't think of as work, yet doing it makes money and provides you with the bread and shelter of life. You'll see what it's like if you make a true commitment to being self employed, put all your energy into it, and stick with it for the long run.