By Allen Lundy

There are all types of people in this world. Everyone of us is unique in one way or another. We all look different, we have different hobbies, likes, dislikes, and most of all we have varied skills and learning abilities.

Our uniqueness is what makes each of us special. The ability to make decisions and take responsibility for our actions is what really sets an entrepreneur apart from everybody else with a desire for a home based business.

Making the decision to start your own home based business is just the beginning of a long, fun, exciting and sometimes frustrating journey. Are you ready?

With the Internet being such a prolific venue for anyone desiring to have their own home based business, it’s no wonder so many people have shelled out hundreds and thousands of dollars for their dream – a successful home based business – only to have that dream turn into a nightmare.

You may or may not have been one of those that started a home based business only to find out there is more to a work at home business than just putting up a website and waiting for the money to come rolling in.

If you haven’t been told before, let me say it now – It doesn’t work that way.

Running a successful home business takes planning, hard work and yes, even money. You may have heard that you can start your own home business and make a fortune for no money. That my friend is a myth!

Before you start your own home based business you absolutely MUST look before you leap. A home based business requires the same dedication, hard work and ingenuity as any other brick and mortar business.

Do you have a business Plan? Without a “blue print” of what you envision your home business to be and a path forward to get there, all your hard work may be for nothing. You need to have a business plan and you must research the niche that you are planning on making your fortune in. You must know what your business is all about and what it is going to take to make it a success.

You must have a positive attitude. Your home based business will succeed or fail, depending on how you approach it. Regardless if you work your home business full time or part time, you must always do everything in a positive manner. Your should always remember and believe that your home business is a business, it is not a hobby. Thinking of your home business in any other way could set you up for failure.

Set yourself up a balanced schedule. To achieve a balanced schedule, you need to sit down and actually write out a schedule to follow on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Set up specific periods of time for your business. When your schedule shows it’s time to work, do nothing else but work on your business.

You will also set aside time for your family on your schedule. After all, isn’t more time with your friends and family a benefit of having your own business? Put in time for your hobbies, go fishing, ride your Harley, whatever you feel like. You absolutely must have some free fun time. Like the saying goes, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy…Follow your schedule.

Learn everything you can about your products or service: Whether you are selling affiliate programs, software, PLR/MRR products or a service that you can offer, such as television repair, auto repair, the bottom line is you must be considered an expert or at least very knowledgeable. The more you know and the better you are able to articulate to others your knowledge, the more respect within your niche area you will receive. When you are considered the best, Word-of-Mouth advertising can do wonders for your bank account.

Purchase a good domain name: You have already done your research and you know what products you are going to sell, you now have to get one of the most important items for your new home based business. You need to “name” your business. Your domain name is one of the very first things people will see and it will be their first impression of you. Make a good first impression.

Set up your payment options: Many home based businesses will already have some sort of payment option set up on ready made websites. However, especially for individuals that may be new to Internet Marketing, I would suggest starting off with PayPal. It is one of the most popular payment processing systems around.

STUDY, STUDY, STUDY AND DID I MENTION – STUDY? You can never learn too much when it comes to setting up, running and maintaining your home based business. There are a ton of books in both hard copy and digital available for you to become an expert in your field in a very short period of time. Start off with the free eBooks you may find. They have excellent information for the beginner or those that just wish to refresh their knowledge. You don’t have to spend $197 for an eBook when you don’t even understand the basic fundamentals.

Finally: Take your time, be patient, don’t get down on yourself if you aren’t the next Internet Millionaire in 30 days or less. Think about this, Microsoft(tm)started out in a small garage and took many years to become what it is.

An overnight success story according to the newspapers and television – yet, that overnight success took 7-10 years to attain. Be patient, and you too could become the next “overnight success”.

Allen Lundy has been working online for the last few years. His new site The Home Business Plan teaches anyone how to create their own plan for a successful business.