Starting A Home Business - Learn To Walk Before You Run
Tips And Advice To Keep In Mind When Starting A Home Business
Hi Folks
I see so many new members asking the same questions day after day, week after week. You know what the Main one is?
How long does it take before I start to make money? When I'm asked this my answer is invariably the second half of this blogs title.
Learn to walk before you run - What a true saying that is and I bet someone has said it to you or you have heard it more than once. Its also true when you first start up a home business you run from home (no pun intended).
There are a lot of reasons to start your own business from home. The freedom from the corporate world, the ability to work to your own schedule, the opportunity to do something that you love for a living. Those reasons are more than enough to lure you into the Home Business Arena.
Do not be fooled into thinking that because of all the appeal, starting a home business is an easy prospect. There are many considerations in starting up your own business, and many areas that people will not realize when they start out. Having a heads-up about some of these areas can help you avoid some of the pitfalls of the new home business owner. I hope they help you to save money and keep the funds coming in, in the future.
Don’t Quit Your Day Job. I'll wager people have said this to you before as well. This is also true when you're thinking about a home business and in fact I would class it as a main rule in starting up a home business.
Most businesses can expect to lose money in their first year of operation, this is just part of the cost of starting up and the learning curve. You will surely make mistakes, and you will likely have to cut into your profits through competition by offering lower rates.
It is important that you keep some kind of income flow in order to succeed, so you should not quit a regular job until you are absolutely positive about your new business’ potential. Assess your situation after you have been working at it for a year.
For example:
- Do you have an established base of clients?
- Is there a potential for more growth?
- Will the time you gain from leaving your regular job and concentrating on the home business allow you to make greater profits?
If the answer to all of these questions is yes, then it might be the time to concentrate on your home business as your only source of income.
Setting Realistic Targets: When you start your business, you should have an idea of how much money you would like to earn. Its always best to set these targets on several levels, in a timescale.
Start out with the most basic. Is the hourly rate you are making worth the amount of work you are putting in?
Secondly, have a monthly amount in mind. This is the standard paycheck period for most people, so you will want to set your amount at whatever you would be earning at your regular job. You can also substitute this with a quarterly goal, as some months will inevitably be better than others.
Finally, consider your yearly goal. Do not count your first year when considering whether your business is worth pursuing. As I said above, most businesses will lose money in their first year. Instead, start your yearly analysis in the second year.
Now we come to taxes. A lot of home business operators neglect to consider their tax burden, whether purposely or not. It is best to always set aside a portion of the month’s business income for tax purposes.
You should always operate under the assumption that you will be caught if you try to cheat. This will save you a lot of grief and money in the end. A good way to put aside money on the taxes that you will owe is to invest in a safe area such as mutual funds or Guaranteed Investment Certificates. This way, your money is safe and you will make a small amount in the year before your taxes are due. In effect, your taxes will actually make you money!
There you go folks, a few tips and advice you should take heed of if your venture into Home Business is something you want to be your future income source.
Have a great weekend and as always if anyone has tips and advice they want to pass on to their fellow members then please do so via a comment below.
Robert Allan
Recent Comments
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No,its Not fast,No it!s not easy, No its not a quick fix for a cash shortage Yes,it takes some money
I couldn't agree more Jim.
It does take Dedication.
It does take Commitment.
It does take Maximum Effort.
Some will make and some will not, I hope you are going to be one of the former.
Enjoy your Sunday.
Robert
Hello Stephanie and thank you for stopping by.
You being a new member you will need lots of help so I hope my blog has pointed you in the right direction.
Enjoy your Sunday evening.
Robert
my former day job wasn't bringing in enough income to pay the bills let alone start a new business. I am currently with an insurance company doing sales and marketing. I am undergoing paid training now. I also do my other remote work on the side and drive for uber. I also have my two Shopify stores. While they aren't enough to bring in a full time income, they bring in some money.
Hi Karin, having worked in Admin myself I know how poor the pay is, hardly enough to be taxed on in fact.
You have to keep at it Karin.
Although the money is just a trickle just now it WILL pick up as long as you keep your goal in sight.
Onwards and Upwards.
Enjoy your Sunday over there in Penn.
Robert
Yes indeed, I can't recall how long it was until I started earning a reasonable weekly amount but it was certainly more than 6 months.
Hope your Easter Sunday is going well for you.
Not too many choco eggs though.
You have to watch that waistline lol.
Enjoy your day.
Robert
Yes i can imagine earning a good amount of money online can take more than 6 months.
No I take it easy with the sweets anyway. Since I'm not trapped in an office cube for 8 hours anymore, I've been going outside and getting active, and that will help my waistline.
Desk jobs are often not weight loss enhancers!
Happy to pass on my tips and advice Johnathan.
Thank you for reading my blog.
Have a great Sunday.
Robert
That really is excellent advice. Being retired, I don't have a day job to keep. Just looking to learn something new and get a little extra cash. Since there is no urgency, I do delay a lot. However, I should still follow the rest of your suggestions so this new hobby can become an income producing business. Thanks for making me think about these things. Debbie
No probs Debbie and if the blog has got you thinking about what you can and should do to get your home business up and running then its done its job.
This being said I hope I have pointed you in the right direction.
Thank you for reading and for your comment.
Enjoy your Sunday.
Robert
No probs Nelson and hope there was a golden nugget in there that will help you now.
It always pays to at least try and be one step ahead of the crowd.
Have a great day.
Robert
Hello Thomas and thank you for your comment.
Hope you really do take heed of the blogs content.
Enjoy your Saturday.
Robert
Robert, this post is packed with outstanding tips. I've spent years as a certified public accountant. It is always sad to see an otherwise successful business person struggling because they did not consider taxes - income taxes, sales taxes, payroll taxes etc. Rules and setting aside money to cover the tax liablities.
Getting the first few small sales is great. However, make sure that you are complying with tax rules for your country, state, county. Every line of business has slightly different rules. People that are selling products need to be especially careful as do those that start employing staff.
Sondra dear lady you are a woman after my own heart.
I have always without exception considered my outgoings as well as my incomings and this of course has to include taxes.
So may people tend to put this aspect of business on the back burner until they are earning 'Big' money.
They tend to forget and albeit on purpose that you have to pay taxes on the little amounts as well.
I hope the members take heed of your advice as well as the advice in my blog.
Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read the blog and for your input via a comment.
Have a great Saturday and an even better Sunday.
Robert
Mel (Onmyownterms) has talked about this as well and suggested that people look into having an accountant and lawyer. Thanks for your input, Sondra.
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I really appreciate the depth of what you shared, Robert. It's easy to get caught up in content, SEO, traffic, ranking, etc. but what you're talking about really is about laying a solid foundation.
I'm so glad that I read your post, Robert. I'll definitely be adding this to my "favorites". I really think this should be a part of the certification; I know Kyle talks about monetary and non-monetary goals, but this really gets deeper. Thank you.
Veronica dear lady and how are you this fine Sunday morning?
Well I hope and getting on with what you joined for and that of course is to make an income from the internet.
Don't forget those taxes though.
Of course the non-monetary goals are just as important as the monetary ones.
They should in fact work hand in glove so that you always have a clear picture of where you're at and where you hope to be in the future.
Have a great day and stay safe.
Robert