Blood, Sweat and Home-based Business Fears

Working from home is hard work, but at the same time it’s scary.

When you first start working from home and you’re spending time growing your business, it’s normal to face a few worries along with fear. Aside from figuring out how you’re going to grow your business, you have to worry about how to pay the bills, where your next client will come from and how to keep your family from turning on you because of your crazy hours.

For some people, fear is a motivator.  For others it’s the first step to feeling discouraged. While being motivated is a good thing, being paralyzed with fear and weighted with worry can dampen your spirits and possibly keep you from growing your business.

You can’t get rid of all of your fears but there are a few ways to tame them.

• Don’t quit your day job. Lately I’ve been reading about business owners I thought were doing well but it turns out that they work full time during the day and work on their business at night. When they make enough money, they’re going to quit their job and focus on their business full time.

• Go for the low-hanging fruit. If you left a corporate job to work from home, turn to your old employer as your first client. The company won’t have to train you, pay your health insurance and give you two weeks off each year. If you left your last job on bad terms, skip to the next tip.

• Use skills not related to your business to make money. If you’re handy with a hammer, have an eye for design, or can landscape like nobody’s business, get to work. There’s nothing wrong with taking odd jobs to supplement your income or in some cases to serve as income until your business takes off.