So You Want to Work from Home? How to Decide on a Home Business

So, you have decided you want to give it a go at working from home? It's a big decision in itself, but only the first step in many to becoming self-employed.

We all want it for varying reasons. Perhaps you just retired or are about to retire and your retirement savings and pension are not quite enough to live on. Or maybe you are just bored and want to keep active -while earning a little extra money.  Maybe you still work outside of the home, either part or full time and are too independent to work for someone else. We all get to this point one way or another.

The number of people -especially retired people, becoming self-employed is steadily growing each year. There are great benefits for working for yourself. You can create your own schedule, wear what you want, work wherever you feel like -and best of all: YOU are the boss.

However, it is hard work and takes perseverance, dedication, determination, careful planning, and a bit of luck. Running your own business means you are the employer and the employee. You have to handle all departments: accounting, sales, marketing, not including the work itself. I'm not trying to talk you out of it, just stating the facts of being self-employed. There are pros and cons.

If you live with a spouse or friend, you should have a talk with them about your plans and see what they think of it. They will probably have some questions and concerns, and may even get you thinking about some things that you didn't before. Your family should be fully aware of your plans, because it will effect them as well. My wife and I work together and we really enjoy it -but that is not right for all couples.

Now that all of that is out of the way, what will you do? How do you decide what trade to take up on your own?

Here's some help to get you started:

If you currently work outside the home and love your job, you could talk to your boss about doing your work from home. Suggest that you could start once a week, and eventually work your way up to your current hours over time. While this isn't starting your own business or being self-employed, you would be working from home and possibly even be able to keep all of your benefits.

If you don't love your job, or are currently unemployed, you'll be starting from scratch. Here are some questions to help you brainstorm some ideas (Really think about these questions, and jot down anything that comes to mind):

• What do you love to do?
• What are your hobbies?
• What do you do to relax?
• What did you love to do as a little kid?
• What did you want to be when you were little?
• What skills do you currently have that you could use? Can you type 80 words per minute? Write stories that awe anyone who reads them? Do you love children and work well with them? Do you make homemade gifts that everyone enjoys to receive on occasions?
• What do people compliment you on?
• What do they say that you do well?

Write down everything no matter how silly it might seem. Put your notes away for a day, and go back to them tomorrow. What could you do as a business? Start crossing out ones that don't really appeal to you, and narrow down your list. Once you have it narrowed down to a few, start researching what it would take to start this type of business. Talk to others who already have and ask for their advice. Soon, you will be doing it yourself! You are already on your way!

Resources:

• http://www.sba.gov
• http://www.wikihow.com/Be-Organized