For many people struggling on a low income, going into business seems like something that other people do. Surely it must require special skills, a good education and lots of starting money? The truth is that, whilst these things can help, none of them are really necessary, especially if your new business is based at home.

To start a home based business, all you really need is a good idea. What product or service can you provide that other people will want to buy? This could be something sophisticated like designing webpages, or it could be a manual skill like pruning trees. Although your home will be your office, your activities could be based at a variety of locations in your local area. If you're not sure what useful things you could do, get out and about and look at the things which are lacking in people's lives, the things which might make their lives easier. Starting a successful business is all about identifying a niche market.

Although the activities of people high up in the corporate world can seem shrouded in mystery, the truth is that basic business skills are not very complicated. You can learn more about them in your local library, or via the internet. If you don't have a home computer, this is one of the most important things which you should consider investing in. Simple computer software, much of it available to download for free, can help you to keep track of your accounts and your company's appointments and obligations.

Several websites on the internet offer free guides to building a business plan. This can help you to attract funding from investors based in your home area, as well as giving you access to locally based government grants and low-rate loans. It will also outline what you need to do to keep your business running smoothly. This is mostly about balancing the money you have coming in against the money you have going out. Your local tax office can give you advice on when and how to pay any tax due on what you earn, and can also let you know which expenses you can write off against tax. This will include a share of the fuel bills, telephone and computer costs for your home.

Running a home based office has several advantages over working from special business premises. Not only is it cheaper, it saves you time and energy on the daily commute, time and energy which you can put into making your business work. It also means that, if necessary, you can be there in the middle of the night to deal with an emergency. Working from home means having flexible hours - if your friends want to go out on a Thursday night you can join them, sleep in the following morning and make up for the lost time on Saturday. You can fit your schedule around family commitments and other activities which are important to you. You can also work extra hours when you need to finish an important project with far less disruption to your life than would otherwise be the case.

When you're based at home, nobody else will be watching your work over your shoulder. If you need to take extra time over a particular task, or if you need to look something up, you can do so without attracting disapproval. Your computer can make it easy to check information you're not sure about, though you should be careful to use only reputable sites for reference. Spell checkers and other office software can help you to produce professional looking documents even without training.

Running a home based business is something anyone can do. If you have the drive and the commitment, you can make it work for you.