Making Money From Home Isn’t Always So Dreamy

Just saying the words, “making money from home” has a allure that draws you in.  It rings of freedom, flexibility, leisure and wealth.

These can all be true of building a business from your home, and yes, you can have all of those things, but that’s usually not how it starts out.

Pamela Slim from Escape from Cubicle Nation recently wrote a post for American Express Open Small Business.

Slim described four stages of change for an entrepreneur and his/her business.  The four stages look like this:

Stage #1:  Death and Rebirth - In this stage you’ll leave a secure position maybe as an employee and launch into your new role as a business owner.

Stage #2:  Dreaming and Scheming - During this stage, you’ll let yourself dream and you’ll imagine all of the wonderful business ideas you have and about all of the success and money you could make.

Stage #3:  The Hero’s Saga - You finally decide on one product or service to throw yourself into and it may or may not do well.  People will scrutinize you and your business.  This can be a challenging spot to be in.  Slim recommends that you surround yourself with encouraging, supportive, and successful people.

Stage #4:  The Promised Land - Your business finally takes off.  You have some consistent business; start to make some money and figure out what’s necessary for your business to function optimally.

Having your own business at home can be a wonderful arrangement with many benefits, but also many sacrifices.  Weigh the pros and cons before you jump in and then make a solid decision and stick with it to see if working from home will really work for you.