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8

Ten Really Great Things About A Home-Based Business

In this book I go over a ton of things that will go wrong and point out important aspects of owning a business that you might miss. Essentially, I go over all sorts of “bad” things that could happen. So this chapter addresses only the good parts about owning a home-based business. It’s my attempt to spread a little sunshine. With that in mind, here are ten great things about owning a home-based business.

1. You Are Paid What You Are Really Worth

Do you think your work and efforts are worth $95 per hour, but your employer begs to differ? Well, once you are the employer, you set the rate. No more feeling underpaid — if you feel underpaid in your own business, trust me, you’re doing something wrong.

2. You Call the Shots — All of Them

You set the work rules, the hours of operation, the amount that gets spent on advertising — you do it all. Everything is run your way. For many people (myself included), this is a big deal. See, I always thought I could do it better than management — and now I get to do just that.

You also get to largely pick and choose the work you want to do. If you want to specialize in the one or two aspects of your business that really interest you, you can. Nobody is going to give you projects you don’t like — you have complete control over accepting them or not.

3. The Commute Is Usually Really Nice

My commute is about 50 feet. As long as I successfully navigate the sleeping cat on the stairs, there’s very little traffic. Depending on the type of home-based business you choose to start, this could vary, but in most cases, your driving/commuting time will go down.

4. More Time at Home

I suppose this could be a good or bad thing depending on your home life, but I’m fairly confident that most people who start a home-based business partly do it so they can spend more time with their families. The absence of a long commute and the fact that you set the hours you work means more time at home.

5. You Get to See More of Your Children’s Activities

One of the biggest complaints many working parents have is that they miss a lot of school plays, concerts, little league games, etc. Working for yourself in a home-based business means you can attend more of these activities. I realize this could mean attending a three-hour play where your child has a 30-second, nonspeaking part playing a tree; or you being witness to yet another 23-0 error-filled thrashing that is called in the second inning due to the mercy rule, but at least you were there.

6. You Get Out of Doing Things You Don’t Want to Do

This is the flip side to having more free time. The nature of a home-based business is such that vitally important work can spring up at any time. Meaning it’s the perfect excuse to get out of doing things you don’t want to do.

I’m serious — this is a benefit of owning your own business. How many times have you fumbled for an excuse not to do something? Your own business is a slam-dunk excuse that nobody can argue with.

This excuse works almost universally. Say you have a neighbor who invites you to his annual BBQ, which is something you’d be happy to attend if it weren’t for the lousy food, your neighbor’s questionable hygiene, the three free-roaming dogs he insists on keeping, and the pool that doubles as a … well, let’s not get gross, but last year, there were 11 small children swimming for five hours with no bathroom breaks.

Instead of damaging relations with this key figure in your life, (after all, he’d give you the shirt off his back ... not that you’d ever want it, but the offer stands), you can instead just tell your neighbor that you have an important client (Mr. Recliner) that needs attention.

I know it sounds like I’m kidding, but I’m not. The simple fact is that working for yourself gives you a “get out of stuff free” card. It’s a nice perk.

7. No Coworkers

This can be a double-edged sword. The upside is coworkers are usually in the way — in the way of your career, in the way of getting things accomplished, in the way when you have a great idea …

However, I do admit that sometimes there’s a slight bit of isolation in working in a home-based business. I did like many of the people I worked with, and I miss the camaraderie. If you’re a big “people person” and like coworkers a lot, make sure you’re okay with the fact that there are none in your own business (at least not initially).

In the end, I’m a bit of a loner, and I prefer the company of my two dogs and one cat, who make ideal coworkers. No backstabbing, no office politics — just give them a meal and they’re happy.

8. You Can Do Usual “Weekend” Things When You Wish

Do you know what stores look like on Tuesday afternoon? They’re empty. People who work normal business hours have no idea how nice it is to go shopping when there aren’t crowds of people and long lines. Working for yourself in a home-based business usually gives you the freedom to shop or do other things, like go to the post office and the bank when you wish (for the most part).

In addition to this, when I get stressed with work and need a quick break, do you know what I do? I mow my lawn. This accomplishes two things: It gives my mind the clearing out that it needs, and by mowing my lawn during the week, it also frees up my Saturday afternoon.

9. No Stupid, Arbitrary Rules

When you own a home-based business, you can usually dress like you wish, decorate your office how you wish, come in when you wish, and leave when you wish. You can set a vacation time and not worry about it having to be approved, and (depending on your type of business) you can take off any day you want. You don’t have to follow any inane rules. For example, through intelligent scheduling and working a little harder some days, my business employs the three-day-weekend rule quite frequently.

10. No Boss

I saved this one for last because it’s a big deal to me — the fact that the boss is the person looking back at you from the mirror is a huge plus.

I didn’t have many good bosses — I had a few good ones earlier in my career (Al H. from Playtogs and Pete M. from Travelport immediately spring to mind), but I found as I rose in the corporate structure, the bosses got worse and worse. The rules got sillier, and the structure less flexible. Early in my career when I was a retail clerk, if I needed a day off, Al could just plug in another name-tag-wearing schlep with almost no noticeable drop-off.

However, as my skills improved and it was harder to replace me (or so I told myself), the requests for days off and vacations were met with less enthusiasm. And I was expected to dress better, too. In addition, office politics started rearing its ugly head. Any idea I came up with was met with suspicion; who would take the credit was a big deal.

I have little patience for things like this. As far as work goes, I am interested in doing a good job, not in who gets credit for it. I dislike endless meetings and indecision, and am quite grating and difficult to deal with when I’m hit with red tape and office politics. So, being my own boss is a HUGE plus.

I suspect many people reading this book are a little like that. If you see yourself in any of the preceding examples, it’s a good bet you will like working for yourself in a home-based business.