HomeBizNotes.com 
The tendency to become distracted by other tasks and people when we work at home challenges many of us.  We find it difficult to block off specific amounts of time and tasks free of interference from family, friends, and other work facing us.
There’s an interesting article, with informative tips at CareerJournal.com, Running a Home Business Like a Big-Company Office by Kelly K. Spors.
Running a business from home isn’t always as liberating as it sounds. With all the distractions of home, like young kids, errands and dirty dishes, competing for attention, many home-based entrepreneurs find managing their time and concentrating on work particularly daunting.
However, Kelly …read more

Celebrate your successes, small and large
Take time for you. It’s not only allowed. It’s good for your business (and you)
Take time for your friends & family away from work
Give yourself permission to make mistakes, or be grumpy sometimes
Start or expand your online presence or try something new or creative
Remember why you started your home business
Be a devil… and Bust a Home Biz Myth at Home Biz Notes
Be collaborative… and Share A Top Home Biz Tip
Be interviewed for the Home Biz Notes Walk of Fame

We look forward to having you visit and be part of our …read more

We’ve mentioned here several times the need to check out zoning regulations pertaining to your home before you decide to set up a home business, particularly one that involves customers/clients coming to your home.   (However, online business might be affected, too, in some areas.)
 I just read a news item, License Denied for Existing Home Business, that concerned this topic.
The aldermen decided, according to the mayor’s statement ” they’re running a business in a residential area and we can’t approve that.”  He did say if the owners moved their lawn mower service business to a commercially zoned area, the license would be approved.
There …read more

This article in Business Week, Before Setting Up Shop on eBay, by Karen E. Klein, provides tips to consider about insurance, taxes, licensing, permits and other similar issues before setting up your Home Business.  Even though it may be an online business, rather than one with customers coming to a shop in your home, you may find several legal and regulatory matters to take care of first.
These regulations may vary from state to state, county to county, and even town to town.  However, it’s better to be aware of them before you begin.
Ms. Klein mentions the book, eBay for Dummies, by Marsha Collier …read more

The appearance of your blog and your business say much about you. First impressions are important. Whether it’s a shop in your home or web site or blog, do they give the impression you want customers to perceive?
The old adage, “You only have one time to make a first impression,” still holds true. Even in these days when much business is done online and customers don’t physically see you when doing business with you, there are still ways that you give an impression.
*Your blog and/or web site don’t have to be flashy, but should give the impression …read more

Juggling a home business with family presents a challenge to any mom, as does coordinating an outside-the-home job with caring for children.  However, when one has triplets, the challenge may present even more situations to cope with.
Mary Beth Stevenson, already had her home business up and running when her triplets arrived.  Working from home at her designing business appears to have worked well for her. 
This wasn’t simply a whim, “What do I do now?” when she found she was going to have triplets.  She and her husband decided they wanted her involved in a home business before they were married, so …read more

No business operates in a vacuum without competitors striving for your customers/clients.  This is not to say everyone is out there wanting to take your business away or hoping you fail.  Sometimes, too, your business is so specialized that there aren’t many with your skills or abilities or edge on an innovative product.
However, when you start a business be knowledgeable about others in the same field who would be competing for your clientele.  Also, stay attuned to anyone starting a business that would take away your customers. 
When a business becomes successful, other people often desire to start a similar one.  …read more

One reader, reminded me, after reading my post about choosing a name for your home business, that business owners should consider their web site name too and make sure it’s easy to remember.  Most home business owners are developing web sites these days.
(Even if you have a physical business location, not simply a web site, you’re often asked, “What’s your web site?”  We’re almost expected to have a site where customers can go for information and even ordering.)
So you need to think about what you’ll name the site as you’re developing it. Generally the name will reflect the name of your business.  However, if you’re …read more

Some home businesses may be temporary…a business that fills a need, for you and your customers, for a particular stage in your life, for a particular time period or event, or related to a particular region where you live at the time.   If this business doesn’t become a lifelong pursuit, that doesn’t mean it’s a failure.
You may find that another opportunity comes into your life, your life encounters changes that make this business no longer feasible, or the market for your product or service disappears. 
*During the Bicentennial Years in the United States (1975-76), many businesses created items and services related …read more

Sometimes it seems we have so much to do, with a business, family commitments, perhaps a job if we’re not full time home business that we wonder how we’re going to get it all done.  Working at or from home is what we want to do, but how do we get everything done…and on time?
Rico Mossesgeld, blogger at b5media’s Contract Worker has an interesting post addressing this situation, “Getting Things Done, Even if 30 Projects Are Pending.”  Check Rico’s post if you’d like some suggestions on how to “dig yourself out of the hole” and set your priorities.