Cougar's Pursuit of Happiness: business

Showing posts with label business. Show all posts

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Life Skills and Success Resources List

All of this information basically amounts to a book, possibly several books. Like my Writing Resources post, I'll be referring my newer articles back to this. It saves time from linking a batch of articles each time.

More than that however, I've always wanted to package something like this in such a way that it could be shared and given away for free. Review it for yourself first. If you know anyone that could use this, I've already done the hard work--all you have to do is give them this article's address. I want to make a difference with my life and what I've learned, and this is the closest thing I have short of sitting and talking with people individually.

Some of this stuff may be a little over the heads of younger kids and teenagers, but I really wish I'd had access to information like this before I entered college. Most of this is good life skills foundation material--things that I never really got in school but fortunately still had taught to me by some really good people.

I sincerely hope that this information helps you and your families. I know right now is a hard point in life for a lot of people, and I know what that's like. While I know I don't have all the answers, hopefully this will spark some ideas for you and get you around ideas that may have never been taught to you. I know a turning point of me personally was realizing that things don't have to stay the same--that there are ways of getting out of circumstances even when you feel trapped.

Here are the links:

Articles List:

My Life Development (Success Resources Blog):

Tools and Resources:

You can find my most recent articles by visiting my author's blog at http://happycougar.wordpress.com.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Every Legitimate Paid and Reward Website I Know

I've been wanting to do a post like this for awhile and have honestly just procrastinated on doing it. This is mainly for people I know so I can give them one link instead of listing a bunch each time, but if you just happened upon this you're welcome to the information as well.

My qualifications for a legitimate site is 1) It's not a scam and 2) The reward or payment is worth the effort involved--some things are legal but a waste of your time when you could be doing something else.

Here is my list so far--if you have any questions about any of them, leave a comment and I'll try to answer it if I can.

First, the sites that will pay you through PayPal and/or Direct Deposit:

eHow.com--If you enjoy creating how-to articles, this site pays really well and has a very user-friendly format.
Helium.com--This is a paying website for articles of all types. Focus on contests and the marketplace sections first, since those tend to pay the most.
Hubpages.com--Create your own webpages and then sign up as an affiliate with Google Adsense, Amazon, and eBay. Input your affiliate IDs, and Hubpages displays ads with your information 50% of the time. It's a way of staring off with webpage design and earning through affiliates without paying anything out of pocket.
Blogger.com--You can use the same affiliate accounts you created for Hubpages for your blog, keeping 100% of the profits. Google Adsense has it's own selection box, and use the "Third-Party" box for Amazon and eBay.
Associated Content.com--I personally stick to non-exclusive rights (pays less, but you can make more money having an article on more than one website rather than only being able to have it on one), but they're overall a good site.
Gather.com--You can earn either gift cards or cash through PayPal through a points system. You get points for posting photos, articles, and possibly by giving comments and creating groups. (They don't share the exact formula--just that being active on the site will get you points.)
Lulu.com--This is a self-publishing website where you can create books, ebooks, and a lot of other items. You can cash you through PayPal with only $5 in sales.
Cafepress.com--With the right idea, you can make an income from this site with no out of pocket expense, using the free store option. If you have a blog, consider creating a store related to what you blog about.
Bukisa--This is a newer website, also for How-to articles. You can cash out through PayPal at $50. It's a great option if you have a lot of articles already written or plan to write a lot. There is also going to be a photo option, which as of the time of this article is not up yet.
PineCone Research--This is a great survey company to work with, but you have to do a search to find a link to get access to their application. I've worked with them for over 2 years now--I can't go into what we review, but if you come across them it's worth signing up.

Reward-Only Websites:

Writing.com--This website will mainly be of interest to writers. The site has a system called GPs (stands for gift points) that you can earn through reviewing people and winning writing contests and spend for reviews for yourself, buy raffle tickets for prizes, and use for merchandise in the site's store. It's a really fun website and has a great community--I've been with them for 2 years. You can see an example of my portfolio by clicking here.
Swagbucks.com--This website has evolved dramatically (for the better) since I first joined it. It's a reward-based search engine that gives you their version of currency (called Swagbucks) for searching with them. You can redeem swagbucks for everything from mp3 downloads to gift cards to video games. I personally focus on the $5 Amazon.com electronic gift cards for 45 Swagbucks each.
MyPoints.com--Just sticking to the surveys, opening e-mails (you have to click on a "Get Points" button within the e-mail), coupons for stuff you're going to buy anyway, and other things that don't cost you anything out of pocket, you can earn enough points for a $10 gift card every once in awhile. This one is kind of borderline on the "worthwhile" scale, but I can see someone doing well with it if they're more organized with coupons than me.

This is all I can think of at the moment--there are a few others that are potentially good, but I want to test them out prior to recommending them to other people. As with anything that seems good, be sure to check them out with the Better Business Bureau (http://www.bbb.org). I also have an article on eHow on avoiding work-at-home job scams by clicking here.

I hope all of the sites are able to help you. Best wishes to you!

Tricia

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Tips for Starting a Small Business

Starting and owning a business can be one of the most fun and positive life changes a person can make in their life. Businesses are not only a potential source for higher income, but can gradually give a person more time and a creative outlet if they're done right. There are dozens of reasons people will tell you it's not a good idea to start a business, but for most people the positives outweigh the risks.

The following tips are from my own experiences in primarily online businesses. I'm currently 24 years old and have a clear plan of being able to retire before 30 at my current rate of progress. This is basically the process I went through, beginning at age 19:

1) Before you leap into action, educate yourself.

This can be done in several ways. Some colleges have business programs where you can learn about concepts on a formal level. There's nothing wrong with that, but be sure to select a program that is taught by people who own businesses. The college I attended taught almost entirely business theory without practical applications, so I opted for majoring in psychology and communications instead. These majors were indirectly related to business in that they taught me how to work with different personalities and how to communicate clearly.

My real business education came from three main sources. At 19, I began working for a traditional small business, a small movie theatre. This was a unique experience because it had just changed hands, and the new owners let myself and my husband (fiance at the time) have a very active role in the business. I didn't know it at the time, but I was being mentored on how to operate a successful business and getting paid to do it.

This later led me into reading books on business (the kind you find at any retail bookstore or library, not textbooks). Finally when we came across a good business model of an online business, my husband and I got weekly training from a local business group that utilized the same website. Over time, your thought process will begin to change. I can't force myself to think the way I used to think 5 years ago, and I know if I keep going I'll be even better off 5 years from now.

2) Start small and ease your way into business.

I started in business part-time while keeping a full-time job and going to college. It's hard, but it can be done. Sometimes you have to give up some things to have enough time to do it, but I figured out I was wasting a lot of time watching

TV shows that weren't helping me move foward in life. It doesn't mean you get tunnel vision to the point you can't relate to people, but you do have to be a little different than the average person if you want to make progress.

Financially, there's really no need to go into debt to start something like a home-based or web-based business. It's also not a bad idea to incubate a traditional business idea at home in the beginning if possible. I think debt is the number one thing that crashes businesses before they stabilize. I've stopped certain businesses in favor of others that are less hassle, but I've never had to shut down a business due to it not profiting. That's extremely important.

You also have to give yourself time to learn. If you make all of your mistakes while you're on a small scale, you'll do better once you start to grow.

3) Figure out your business niche.

This is also a process, but if you can find some aspect of your business that sets you apart it will help you. You want to be known as the person to go to for that niche. Make sure it's a big enough need that you'll have a stream of business, but narrow enough that you've reduced a lot of competition.

4) Work.

This is kind of a funny tip, but sometimes it has to be said that capital alone won't do it for you. Even with online businesses, you can't expect for the money to flow in the moment your website goes live. The energy and time you invest in the young stages of your business will come back to you when it matures. It is worthwhile, especially when you look at the alternatives of what you could end up doing instead.

5) Enjoy what you do.

The right small business should become more of a way of life for you rather than just a job that you own. I personally love the challenge of having my own businesses, which along with the financial rewards I've never found matched in a job. If people do what makes them happy, it's a lot easier for them to become experts in their field. The money does follow. You just have to make the decision to get started. Best wishes to you!

Saturday, June 21, 2008

How to "Diversify" Your Career

With the way jobs and work have changed over the past few decades, creating a career out of multiple part-time jobs (and part-time businesses for that matter) can give a person more financial stability and often a higher income.

My own life is a great example of this in that I have 6 or 7 different income sources at any given time. Alone, these incomes would be unstable and would not make sense for a person to do. Combined however, they provide flexibility and a safety net if for some reason something happens with one or two of them. I love what I do and am never bored. Plus I get to spend more time with my husband and can still make money while traveling.

To do something like this without hurting yourself financially, expect for it to at least take you three to five years. If you're working a full-time job right now, start developing one of your part-time jobs, a side-business, or other self-employment ideas during the time you'd normally be doing things like watching TV. You'll be tired for a short period of time, but it makes the transition a lot easier. Starting from scratch is also not a bad option if you don't have a job, but keep in mind it's going to take longer and you'll need to focus quickly on finding good opportunities.

As your income goes up, take that extra money you're making and get yourself out of any debt you have. Over time you'll be able to free up more of your time because you won't be working just to pay payments. This will free you up to drop the full-time job and search for another part-time position or two. Even traditional benefits are not a problem if you plan it right because the increase in income will cover them if you're patient and willing to stick with it.

A major "secret" in all of this is it's not all about working more hours. It's more about flexibility and long-term freeing up more of your time and creating a career that works around your life instead of the other way around. Business books can teach you how to do this as far as creating repeat income.

Online businesses are also great sources for income and can fit a wide variety of interests. You just have to take the time to find ideas that you would enjoy working on. A group of part-time jobs can also accomplish something similar, but you have to keep in mind the income is temporary and still based on your time.

I also work a part-time job because my husband and I have some student loans to pay off. After the debt is completely gone, I can literally do any career that I want without worrying about the money aspect. I think what trips a lot of people up is they think to make money they have to be at a miserable job, and if they want to do what they love they'll have to struggle financially. That just isn't true. You just have to be patient and steady when you decide to change things around for yourself.

One last piece of advice is to read everything you can about business and self-employment before you get started and continue to keep learning as you go. This will help you with a lot of the technical details and help you make fewer mistakes. Every self-employed person makes mistakes and has obstacles, but having the ability to create your own career is worth it.

Life is precious, so we should all make the best of it. I wish you the best and hope you pursue your dream!

Thursday, June 12, 2008

How to Wisely Grow a Home-Based Business

Growing a home-based business shares many aspects of growing a traditional small business. There are however a few specific details you need to consider in deciding if it is time to grow and how to do it. The following are a few areas of business you should check in order to help you make wise decisions about growth:

1) Overhead

One of the greatest advantages of a home-based business is you have very little overhead in comparison with a traditional small business. If growing is not going to increase your overhead costs along with your profit, generally you're making a good move. You have to use caution to make sure growing isn't going to harm you more than it helps.

There comes a certain point in some home businesses where it just makes sense to move it out of your home. If you feel like your business has swallowed up your whole house, it may be an option to consider for your sanity and for your family. Rent space first before you buy since you often have little idea if a specific location is going to help you or not. Make sure you can pay the rent without having to borrow the money or having a major loss in profit every month.

2) Time

If you are the only one doing the work for your business, you want to make sure that the profit is going to be worth it in relation to any extra time you have to spend. Ideally, most businesses should require the most intense work in the first few years and take less and less of your time long-term.

If you decide you need more help but fear traditional employees would drain you, consider negotiating a situation where anyone who works for you gets a percentage of the profits they create for you. Avoid legal partnerships however because a majority of those end in disaster when two or more people's goals begin to go different directions. If you are considering adding more people to your business, I would recommend consulting a local business attorney in your area to make sure of the details that would apply and getting their advice.

3) Quality versus Quantity Growth

This can apply to product and service businesses. If you have a service business and have grown in experience, consider raising your rates for new customers. This will increase your profits and decrease your work load. If you're selling products, consider diversifying into higher quality products with greater profit margins. You don't have to give up your existing products, just offer more options.

In other situations, you just need to offer more of what you already have. In making these decisions, you may want to do some experimenting on a smaller scale to see what will work and what won't.

4) Cash Flow

In home-based businesses especially, you should never need to borrow money to expand. This is what sinks a majority of businesses period because beginning profits can't outrun the interest of loan payments. You can get stuck in a financial cycle or even fall behind and lose your progress you've worked so hard to build. It's hard sometimes, but exercising patience will help you succeed.

5) Ability to Diversify

Are there areas related to your current business that it would just make sense to branch into? Since you may already have experience and education, learning a related aspect of business would take less time and give you more stability.

I hope these ideas have been helpful to you. Best wishes to you in growing your business!

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

How to Escape the Rat Race

The main key to escaping the rat race is that your thought process determines how successful you become in life, including financially. This is why some lottery winners end up more in debt 5 years after they win than they were originally, and also why many millionaires could lose all the money they have and get it back within 5 years. If you want to change your financial circumstances long-term, it has to be from the inside-out.

Thinking like a wealthy person is not something that comes overnight. You have to work at it. If you want a great place to start, here are a few ideas that personally helped me:

1) Read Practical Financial and Business Books

These are not necessarily books you'll have suggested to you in high school or college, but they should be. A few authors to start with would be Dave Ramsey, Robert Kiyosaki, Dan Miller, John Maxwell, Napoleon Hill, and Og Mandino. In addition to this, it's helpful to know that millionaires read a lot more than the average adult-about 1 non-fiction book a month.

2) Develop a Plan

The majority of people out there who are living week-to-week and paycheck-to-paycheck are in that position because they don't have a long-term plan. Getting yourself out of debt (freeing up more of your money on a monthly basis) and building wealth does not just happen by accident. There are small changes and sacrifices you can make earlier in life that will pay off later, but you need to do it with focus and with purpose. Business books will not only show you how to make more money but to get more of your time back long-term, which is far more valuable.

3) Find Good Mentors

I can't stress the importance enough of having people in life that pull you forward instead of pull you down. You may find someone in your own career field that will help you learn, or it may be a group of people. What matters is that they challenge you in a good way and care about your future.

4) Do the Work

Success in life takes effort, and sometimes you end up getting pushed out of your comfort zone to really win in life. One of the biggest challenges I think is out there is this idea of the typical 40-hour work week and then people shut their mind down outside of that. Sometimes being successful just requires you to watch less TV and work on something outside your job that will help your future. Right now I work closer to 80 hours a week-40 for someone else and 40 for myself. The payoff to that is I'm doing what I love to do in both arenas and will have the ability to retiring younger compared to most people.

5) Do What You Enjoy

When you're doing something you don't like for the sake of money, it drains your energy and you're not as able to get as much done. When you find something in life that makes you look forward to getting up every day, in your mind it doesn't even seem like work. It may take you awhile to eventually get to that point, but it's worth pursuing.

I hope these tips have been helpful to you. Good luck and best wishes!

Monday, June 2, 2008

Life Lessons From Being an Entrepreneur

For me, I think it's the journey to becoming an entrepreneur--not just the end results--that has had a profound impact on my life.

I grew up in a hard-working blue-collar family. My dad taught me a great work ethic, but I never could see myself only working for someone else for the majority of my adult life. Personal freedom appealed to me, and unfortunately that's a hard thing to have when you're stuck in a paycheck-to-paycheck cycle.

One of the first lessons I learned about entrepreneurship actually happened by accident when I was a child. One day a friend of mine at school noticed a key chain I had gotten out of a 25 cent machine at a grocery store. She really liked it and asked if she could buy it off of me for a dollar. I agreed-making a 300% profit and still having a happy first customer! I reinvested the dollar into 4 more toys and repeated the process with several other kids. Before long I had a booming business-only thing was I didn't realize some kids were spending their lunch money. One trip to the principal's office later, and my first business had to close its doors.

I didn't let it discourage me, but it made me realize the importance of a win-win situation. You don't want to harm your customers for your benefit, especially when it comes so situations where the customer may not be well-informed. With children, this is obvious, but there can be some similar situations with adults as well. Never put yourself into a business situation where you may have to "turn a blind eye" to some aspect of your product or service. Not only is it an ethical issue, but it will hinder your ability to find true success.

Into my teen years, I honestly took the path of nearly everyone around me-worked hard at school, got good grades, and earned enough scholarship money to attend college. During my junior year, I met the man who later became my husband. We both attended a lot of the same broadcasting classes and managed a small movie theater together. It was my friendship with him that brought back thoughts of being an entrepreneur again. His dad was self-employed, so he grew up with the mindset of a business owner's son. I remember it was the first time in my life that I really got to know someone who thought a lot like me-even the things I thought about business that I rarely shared with people because they seemed to go against everything I was being taught in college.

Something I learned during my college years is that entrepreneurial people think differently from the majority on a lot of principles. I can't really say that all entrepreneurs are just born with that desire in them, but it is interesting to me that environment alone doesn't explain the thought process I've had my whole life--I didn't get it from my parents or school. I remember several points where I had "what in the world is wrong with me?" moments--especially when everyone around me seemed excited to be sending out their resumes to companies while I was somewhat dreading it.

The need to fit in can sometimes be conflicting with what you know in your heart is right for your life, and getting over that anxiety of being different--even the fear of being very successful--is something I've found other entrepreneurs have had to deal with as well.

At age 19, I started going to church on a regular basis after being invited by a friend. Some people may be surprised by this and others may not, but I was amazed at how relevent the Bible is to business matters-not just in history but things that are going on right now. Proverbs is a very practical business text, and people have made fortunes based on the advice the book contains.

I also learned not to live my life in compartments. Americans tend to sometimes separate their work, school, family, friends, religion, and hobbies into compartments and not let them mix together. This leads to a lot of inner conflict and division. Over time I've learned that I'm much more than just the sum of my roles in life, and that who I am needs to be the same no matter what I'm currently doing at any given time. That's been a very important lesson.

The best advice I can offer other young entrepreneurs is to read as many books as you can on the topic and get around other people who have a similar thought process. It's much easier to have more successful people pull you to do better than to set mediocre goals for yourself just because they're above those of much less ambitious people around you. Along your journey, help other people who are less fortunate. This keeps your heart right. Lastly, realize that every challenge and struggle you go through along the way will help you--it's in overcoming obstacles that you discover what you're really made of and what will help you succeed long-term.

Sunday, June 1, 2008

Reducing Stress in Life

When it comes to business or a job, stress can sometimes motivate you to do better than if you weren't under pressure. Taken to the extremes however, it can paralyze your decision-making and be very unhealthy over long periods of time. In these cases, unhealthy stress definitely needs to be reduced.

Over the past couple of years, I've learned a lot about handling stress that I think could be helpful to a lot of people. Everyone is going to have personal things that help them, but these are just a few that stand out in my mind:

1) Develop a positive attitude about life in general.

This doesn't happen overnight but is something you have to put effort into on a daily basis until it becomes habit. Ways you can do this include reading books, hanging around other people who have good attitudes, and avoiding people and situations that drag your mood down. Doing this won't make you become exempt from having challenging situations coming into your life, but if you gain maturity in this you'll know how to handle things better.

2) Have a place you can go for at least 15 minutes quiet time during your day.

This could be at work or your home, depending on which is less hectic. Sometimes when a lot of things are going on, you just need a place to rest and clear your head for a moment. If you can, it helps to do this more than once, especially on busy days. Though it seems to take away time where you could be doing something, you'll find you're more efficient and organized when you get focused. Some days I just come home from work and take a short 15 minute nap so I can shift from what I was working on earlier in the day to something totally different.

3) Laugh on a daily basis.

There is some truth to the saying, "Laughter is the best medicine." Ever notice when you get done laughing with a group of friends or after a funny movie that you usually feel really good for a long time afterward? Your body physically reacts to laughter, and it's a great way to reduce stress.

4) If you have the money, splurge on a back massage or trip to the spa.

I honestly grew up near the poverty level, so my mom never got the opportunity to do stuff like this. About a year ago however I was invited to go to a spa with a group of friends. It's not something I can afford to do a whole lot right now, but I was surprised that the cost to go to one wasn't as much as I thought it would be. I don't think I've ever been so relaxed, and it was worth it.

An alternative that's little less draining on the budget is to take a warm bath with relaxing music playing. In either case, be prepared to likely fall asleep.

5) Exercise.

Exercise is really good for getting the tension from stress out of your system. I like to exercises in general, but as far as stress relief it seems to be the most helpful when you're frustrated about something.

6) Work toward doing things that you really like as far as your career.

I think jobs are the top stress producers for a lot of people, especially for people who are in a career for the wrong reasons. I've found over time that if I enjoy what I'm doing, any challenges are worth overcoming. Work doesn't have to be such a terrible thing, but people can let it take over their lives and overpower other parts of their lives.

We've had to be extremely careful about that in our situation, but for the past few years my husband and I have been working on businesses together in addition to our jobs. In that way, it's not been a whole lot different than spending time together in any other activity. We're just making money at the same time, and we have fun.

7) Keep your priorities in check.

I think this idea encompasses all of the previous ones. Life is very rarely free of any stress, so you have to set priorities on what matters to you most. In this way, you can get through a lot of obstacles that would have bothered you a lot more otherwise. I think this cuts down on the stress that a lot of us tend to generate from our own thinking that's not necessarily as bad as it appears to us.

I hope you've found these tips helpful. Good luck and best wishes to you!

Friday, May 30, 2008

How to Not Let Negative Influences Harm Your Life

For new entrepreneurs, realizing how outside influences (both positive and negative) impact a person's life and success is a very important lesson. One of the hardest things to deal with is when someone close to you does not share your excitement and enthusiasm about your business dreams and goals. Another is just keeping your mood up when daily life grinds at you. Here are some tips dealing with not letting outside influences hurt your chances for success:

1) With negative people, find out what their motivation is for their negativity.

This is extremely important. There are some people who are just concerned for your well-being. They don't want you to do something they believe is too risky, even though it is a controlled risk from your point-of-view. When it comes down to it, these people just care and need some reassurance and comfort that you're going to be fine. These can sometimes be good people to listen to because they may catch possible problems for you before they even occur, making you a better business owner.

There are other people who are uncomfortable with other people around them succeeding. I was told by one of my business mentors that this is sometimes called the "crabs in a bucket" concept-when crabs are captured, they're placed in a wide-open bucket because the ones on the bottom don't let the ones on top escape.

2) Read books that keep you going and give you hope.

There are thousands of them out there. Sometimes when you're the only entrepreneurial thinker in your family, you need this to keep from feeling like you're alone in what you're trying to accomplish. Books are also a type of mentorship-the author can't be with you one-on-one physically, but a lot of them put their heart into their work to the point you feel like they're right there with you.

3) Watch less TV.

This is funny coming from someone who went to school to go into broadcasting as a career. I'm not saying live in a cave and not know anything that's going on. I'm also not saying you can't watch television at all-I'd be a hypocrite because there several shows my husband and I enjoy watching. The thing is however is that the average person watches anywhere between 20-30 hours of television a week. If you're in that category, you need to realize that overall TV is still a negative influence. Some people may disagree with that, but from personal experience watching less TV has increase our success and our daily mood.

There are shows out there that help people as well as well-written fictional shows, but there are also shows that give you no benefit and people only watch them because it's something to do. If the average person cut their TV viewing by half and spent that 10-15 hours building something that would help them financially, within less than a decade they would probalby have enough money to do the fun things they were watching other people on TV do!

4) Realize that resistance to negative influences develops over time, not overnight.

You have to practice at it for it to work. Just like any other aspect of business, you may make some mistakes. The best thing to do is learn from them and move on. A great side-effect is that you become a positive influence in the lives of other people. Personally I think there's a great need for that in our culture, and it just feels good to be there for other people when you know how important it is to be that way.

I hope these tips have been helpful to you. Best wishes to you in business and in life.

For more how-to articles, check out my Ehow.com article library by clicking here.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Questions to Ask Yourself Before Starting a Business

Transitioning from a job to a home-based business does not always have to be a sudden event. For me personally, it was more of a process. There are questions you need to ask yourself along the way, but I don't want to give you the impression that you have to know everything about business before you can even start.

Most people are never taught how to run a business in high school or college, so there's a lot of learning and experience gained along the way. If you're considering starting your own business, these the beginning questions I believe you should think on before making any major decisions:

1) Are you willing to learn a new way of thinking?

Sometimes the traits that make you a great employee will frustrate you as a business owner. If you're a hard worker and are used to getting immediate financial feedback for your work, it may be difficult at first to visualize how results work in a business. The time and money you initially invest in a business may not show up in the form of results for months or even years later. You have the potential to make more money over your lifetime however, so for me the trade-off was well worth it.

Thing that will help with this issue are reading practical business books and getting around at least a few other people who have owned traditional and home-based businesses. Any advice you can gather ahead of time will help you avoid common mistakes and know what to expect.

2) Are you willing to take a personal risk?

You're going to have people tell you you're making a mistake, no matter how great your idea seems to you. My husband and I both worked day jobs as we were getting our businesses off the ground so we wouldn't go into debt to do them. This meant 16-18 hour days sometimes with people making fun of us the entire time. Those same people will tell you how "lucky" you are when your work pays off. Be prepared to put up with that at least to a certain extent.

You're also going to have supportive people in your life as well. Also, not everyone who is negative at first is bad. They just may care about you and not want you to get hurt. It may take some time for all of those relationships to settle out.

3) Do you at least have a general plan on how you're going to make the business work?

From a financial standpoint, it's better to start a home-based business part-time and work your way into it as it becomes stable. This can take as little as a few months to sometimes several years, according to the nature of the business.

I'm all in favor of people following their dreams, but I don't suggest they do it on credit. Your greatest assets with a home-based business are your creativity and your effort. I can tell you from experience that it's possible to create a business with less than $100 start-up capital. My first real business cost me $61 to start: $1 for a box of yard sale books and $60 in shipping supplies and postage. I made a profit of $100 because I seen a good opportunity. I just kept reinvesting my profit over and over again until I had developed a nice used book business with no debt. It was learning how to recognize the right things to buy that developed my business, not money.

If you're comfortable with beginning a business, I want to encourage you to do it. I think it's wonderful to have something to call your own that you can develop for you and your family. If you're not quite comfortable yet, keep reading and researching. Usually it only takes one great idea to get you started. Either way, just don't let fear rule your decision-making. It's better to do something you love and fail your way to success than it is to be silently miserable your whole working life. Whether it's a job or a business, you need to do what matters to you.

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Saturday, May 3, 2008

How I View the Business Side of Writing

Writing can be an art and a business, and I've been trying to improve my knowledge of both sides of it.

I was thinking the other day about highly-paid professions--take a doctor, for instance. They have to go to school for 8+ years past high school. Then after all of that effort, they get through their residency just to get swamped by huge student loans and malpractice insurance fees. It probably takes several more years to get that sorted out, not to mention the social pressures and built-up stress telling them they should have the big house and nice car immediately after they start practicing. Dave Ramsey calls it "Docitis."

The stereotypical vision most of us have of doctors playing golf all the time is probably far from the truth today. They have to keep working, or their income goes away. There's nothing wrong with sacrificing that much if that's a person's dream--eventually they do get out of debt and prosper by helping other people. I admire their determination.

I look at that in comparison to going into writing full-time professionally. I'm seriously thinking about it right now. I know it's still difficult, and I haven't been at this long enough to say, "See, I have this book deal and that published..." What I do know however is that the odds are in our favor today probably more than any other time in history.

Look at what the Internet has done and continues to do. People couldn't have imagined a site like this 20 or 30 years ago. We have nearly unlimited outlets and markets, and that is exciting to me. Just by the numbers alone, it's possible to find a niche. It's just a matter of just trying and gaining more knowledge about the industry.

Writing is one of those fun professions where if you do the work right once, you can get paid over and over again for that same work. Intellectual property is still property. You can't make a $100,000 yearly income magically appear from thin air, but you can use your imagination to earn it. People do it all the time, so we can't say it's impossible for us.

What some people don't understand is they don't have to be the smartest or the best writer out there. I keep noticing just from the shelves in bookstores that it's often the persistent writers that really are winning. A lot of writing is more about the heart and soul than just pure intellect. It was hard to get my mind around that at first, especially growing up in a school environment where IQ and SAT scores seem to determine your financial value in society if you're not a great athlete or auditioning for Hollywood.

People want knowledge, and they want to know that they're not alone in what they're facing in life. Most of us have something to offer in one area or the other.Don't let the fear of rejection keep you from trying. I get rejected hundreds of times a day and don't even know it--my husband and I own Internet businesses. We just don't get piled down with letters saying, "We like your products and services, but we do not have a need for them at this time..."

I'm just going to be flattered to have publishers at least spend 5 cents worth of paper and ink on me, lol! In the middle of a lot of rejection can come great sales. You never know that the next day will bring...

Plus look at our overhead as writers--a computer, printer, envelopes, postage--maybe a couple of hundred dollars worth of books to help improve the art side of things. Compare that to what it takes to be a doctor, starting a traditional business, or even just going to a 4-year college! I'm going a little longer than normal with this entry, but what I'm trying to say as a fellow writer is Don't Give Up! We're all unique, and we can all win in our own way.