Home based business for dummies

Congratulations! You’ve decided to start a home-based business. We welcome

you as you join with millions of others who have already made a

decision to start a home-based business. According to the Small Business

Administration (SBA), there are about 23.7 million businesses in the United

States today. Of this total, 99.7 percent are small businesses (defined by the

government as businesses with fewer than 500 employees), or about 23.6

million. Of these, just over half — about 11.8 million — are home-based

businesses.

That’s a lot of home-based businesses!

Take it from us: Owning your own home-based business may be the most

rewarding experience of your entire life. And not just in a financial sense

(although many home-based businesspeople find the financial rewards to be

significant), but also rewarding in the sense of doing the work you love and

having control over your own life.

Of course, every great journey begins with the first step. In this chapter, we

provide you with an overview of this book, taking a look at the basics of

home-based business — including getting started, managing your money,

avoiding problems, and moving ahead. Finally, we’ll consider some of the

good news — and the bad — about starting your own home-based business

and knowing when it’s time to make the move.