Home Business
(featured column)

Start Your Own Home Business and Avoid Work-at-Home Schemes

by Michelle Jones

There will always be an abundance of advertising on the Internet (and practically everywhere else), enticing you to start a quick and easy work-at-home business.  Yet you may have noticed that we rarely promote any of them here at BetterBudgeting.com, and with good reason.   

Starting Your Own Home Business

Running a successful home business is anything but easy, it requires years of dedication and hard work.  So, if you want to start a home business, I recommend doing something you love.  Something you won't mind spending countless hours on every day, often with little to no income in the early years.

Create a simple business plan and just start building your business.  Then, and most importantly, don't give up until your business becomes a success!  That is, unless you discover you don't love the work as much as you thought you did.  

For example: I love baking homemade cookies.  But I'm pretty sure if I started a cookie business I would soon loathe baking cookies every day!  I love doing lots of things, but writing is the one thing I enjoy so much that I can work for 12 hours straight and not have even looked at my watch a single time.  If you have something you love to do like that, whether it's creating a product or providing a service, you might have your own home business just waiting to be born - completely on your own!  

And meanwhile, while you're thinking of all the things you love to do that might be turned into a home based business...

Here's some great tips on what to avoid! 

The Federal Trade Commission works for the consumer to prevent fraud and deception, and here's a list of the helpful information they've provided about Work-at-Home schemes at their Web site... (www.ftc.gov)

Sample Ad:

*Be part of one of America's Fastest Growing Industries! Earn thousand of dollars a month - from your home - Processing Medical Billing Claims.*

"You can find ads like this everywhere - from the street light and telephone pole on your corner to your newspaper and PC. While you may find these ads appealing, especially if you can't work outside your home, proceed with caution. Not all work-at-home opportunities deliver on their promises. 

Many ads omit the fact that you may have to work many hours without pay. Or they don't disclose all the costs you will have to pay. Countless work-at-home schemes require you to spend your own money to place newspaper ads; make photocopies; or buy the envelopes, paper, stamps, and other supplies or equipment you need to do the job. The companies sponsoring the ads also may demand that you pay for instructions or "tutorial" software. Consumers deceived by these ads have lost thousands of dollars, in addition to their time and energy." 

Classic Work-at-Home Schemes... 
(Medical Billing, Envelope Stuffing, and Assembly or Craft Work)

Questions to Ask...

Where to Complain...

Where to Get More Information... 

For all of the above information, please read more at the Federal Trade Commission Web site.  

If you want to work at home, or need to work at home, don't give up on creating legitimate work that you can do.  I believe we all have valuable talents and gifts that can be formed into a home business, but you're going to have to work hard, and stay motivated!

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Copyright © 2004 by Michelle Jones

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