Thanks to technological advancements, people have decided to make lifestyle changes and have flocked by their thousands to start home based businesses. Home based businesses is the largest growing segment of small businesses today and unlike previous decades anyone who has a computer and internet connection has the ability to start their own home based business literally overnight.
Home based businesses can afford greater flexibility over our lives and can really give us a sense of freedom. With this sense of freedom there are also pitfalls that many home based business owners make that can really set them back.
Here are 7 stupid things people do working from home that can be disastrous to your new found freedom and financial well being.
1. Taking their new found freedom to literally. Your now the boss, you've been waiting for this moment. No more boss to report to and no stuffy corporate environment to inhibit and hold you back. Instead of taking this as a chance to stretch yourself you instead take the new freedom to literally and spend countless hours watching day time soaps instead of working. You get distracted by household chores and go on endless errands during work hours because you can. The reality is that just because you have your home business doesn't mean you can slack off and work when you feel like it. The reality is that unlike in the workplace where you can work to the barest minimum expectation and still get paid, here if you don't work hard you don't get paid. Eventually your sloppiness is going to catch up and you are going to struggle to pay the bills. So before you get excited you need to realize that you are going to have to work harder than you did for your boss only this time you will reap the rewards.
2. They go overboard with the work. You started a home based business for a reason, maybe it was so that you can spend quality time with your family, maybe it was to enable you to stay at home with your young children or maybe it was for a better lifestyle choice. So a few months into the new home business you see these very people working twice the hours they used to when they were working only now instead of taking their work home with them they have the work with them at home 24 hours a day. These people can't seem to switch off from their business because there is always something to do and never seems to be enough time to get them done. Don't let that be you. Learn to switch off completely from work and set up scheduled times when you will work and when you will spend with your family so that you don't feel guilty for spending time with your loved ones.
3. They don't know how to delegate. If you look at your former workplace you weren't expected to do everything. They had people doing a particular task and others doing another task. The reality is that all good businesses know how to delegate tasks and functions to people who are going to do them best. This isn't going to be the case with a new startup home based business simply because you may not have the financial resources to delegate everything that you want to. However you can do some simple things to delegate things to people if you realize how much you can save by doing it. For example if it is going to take you 6 hours to get your monthly bookkeeping records up to date but it will cost 3 hours and $600 to delegate to the bookkeeper you can decide can you make better use of your six hours and will you in that period make more than $600 to pay for the bookkeeper. If so then delegate. The more you focus on your core competences and delegate the rest the better off you will be and your business. Not only will you be doing things you enjoy and keep your enthusiasm for your business high you are also giving opportunities to help others do what they are competent at.
4. They buy themselves a job instead of building a business. The point of going into business is so that you can create some sense of financial freedom and to provide a product or service to your target market. However many people who start home based businesses soon realize that it just isn't economically viable and instead of calling it a day and start a different business with better prospects or go back to the workforce they instead hold onto their dream like it's the last glamour of hope in their lives. You can spot these people because they keep pumping their savings into a business or they get their loved one who has worked hard for their paycheck to invest into their business. They hold onto the hope that one day the business will grow but it generally never does. If your business isn't viable then all you have is you have bought yourself a job where you are overworked and for some people they may even be volunteering for the pleasure of owning a business because they can't even draw an income. Sure during the startup period many businesses owners choose to reinvest the profits back into their business and sure some business takes longer than others to break even but you know after time whether the business is going to work and because you are home based there isn't any reason why you can't start again with another venture after all you have now learnt some valuable lessons. Don't hold onto an empty dream if it isn't performing.
5. The dream to small and settle. You might have a home based business but that doesn't mean you have to think small. The greatest shame is seeing home based business owners who only think small because they see themselves as a small business owner. The reality is that many great well known companies started out in dorm rooms, in someone's garage or on the kitchen table. There is no reason to create limitations on yourself if you want to create a large company. Great things can start off small, just dream big and take one day at a time.
How often do you see someone about to do something stupid and you just cringe. It seems obvious to you and you wonder why isn't it obvious for them. The reality though is that we all do stupid things that have messed up our lives at one stage or another. That is the reason we are who we are today, we have learnt from our stupidity and the fact is that is why we can see and recognize stupidity in others. Sometimes people need to make their own mistakes, if for no other reason than to learn first hand. I think that must be one of the hardest things about being a parent: watching your child make mistakes you know that they'll regret later, but being unable to stop them or talk them out of it.
So what are some of those stupid things people do to stuff up their lives so that you might be able to recognize them and hopefully avoid them. Unless of course your one of those who are destined to experience pain before you will actually learn from it.
1. Hanging around other stupid people. It's funny how people who do stupid things are inevitably hanging around stupid people. They say if someone was to meet you for the first time and didn't know anything about you but met the five people who are in your circle of influence. They could tell you where you will be in five years and the person you are. So if you want to be someone of substance then stop hanging around stupid people. You want to have people in your life who challenge you and inspire you in life. People who expect more of you then you expect of yourself to become a success in life.
2. Settle for what life dishes them. You know these people, they are the ones wondering around like the world is against them and have lost faith in life. How pathetic an existence that would be to just settle for less than what you rightfully deserve. There is a reason why only around 10% of people in the workforce will actually retire financially independent. Think about it we all spend a considerable portion of our adult life and yet many will be dependent on the government to provide them with an income during their twilight years or to at least supplement it.
3. They make stupid choices. We all live each day with a wealth of choices. Every day we have to choose whether to wake up out of bed or press the snooze. We choose how we treat so and so. Life is about choices but making stupid choices without researching can be immensely detrimental to your life. We choose to put caffeine in our system, we choose to smoke, we choose to eat a hamburger instead of the sandwich. They are all choices and if you want to change your life start by changing your choices.
4. Letting debt get out of hand. America's debt is starting to get ridiculous. Households have embraced the easy availability of credit and have spent like the river of gold never ends. It does and it will. If you are going to live a life where you aren't controlled by your debt then you need to start changing your spending habits. Don't stuff up your life and be a slave to your money for the rest of your life trying to pay off your mortgage and debt. Learn to know how much you spend each month by writing it down and then decide if your income actually meets your spending patterns without touching debt. The most stupid thing is to see people with their eyeballs up in debt and losing it all when they lose their job or circumstances change. Don't let that be you, get control of your spending today and get yourself out of debt.
5. They lose their dream. We have all had dreams but when we have a family all of a sudden it seems selfish to still pursue your dreams. So you put it aside and start to put your partner first, your family first. This is very noble of you but let me tell you that if you put aside your dreams and aspirations and lose yourself then you will feel empty one day. We see people all the time living for others and then one day waking up and realizing that they aren't happy. Keep your dreams, share them with your partner and family. After all your all there to want the best in each other. Encourage each other to pursue your dreams and you will be a better person to yourself, your partner and your family.
6. They climb the wrong corporate ladder. A common stupid mistake is working someone where your don't find any sense of enjoyment or challenge. You wake up every morning, battle through peak hour and settle yourself into a job that you detest for eight hours. I don't know about you but that sounds stupid. You might argue that at least it puts food on the table and a roof over your families head. But if you are going to spend one third of your waking day every day for a huge chuck of your adult life then at least choose somewhere that you find enjoyable, passionate about and that you love. Don't just climb the corporate ladder and realize after 20 years that your ladder is leaning against the wrong wall. Decide today what you want out of your job and commit yourself to finding it. That doesn't mean quitting your job right this very moment.
7. They settle for the wrong partner in life. The person you choose to spend your life with can be a huge factor in how your life will turn out. I mean it's someone you literally share a very large portion of your life with. Your partner therefore is someone who is going to inspire you to be a better person or they have the power to pull you down. They may not do this in an obvious manner. Make sure that the person you share your life with believes in you more than you could ever possibly believe yourself. They say all great men and women had a person in the background that made them who they are today.
Terence Young has sinced written about articles on various topics from Health, Personal Desktop and Skin Care. For more information on work at home opportunities visit: . Terence Young's top article generates over 246000 views. to your Favourites.