Many home business owners become discouraged if their venture doesn’t take off immediately and earn a full time income so they can quit their outside job or don’t have to get one.  However, most home businesses (or any small business) take time to become successful.  It requires planning, organization, hard work, perseverence and time to succeed.  Too many give up when success doesn’t happen immediately.
Also, you must be willing to endure the ups and down of the economy, find new products and services if what you have become outdated, learn promotional techniques and provide good quality in whatever you do.  Occasionally …read more

Over at Small Business Boomers, we just finished up a “Holiday Movie” contest. It got me to thinking about movies that feature people who work at home. Here is what I came with; if you have others, let me know:
Cheaper by the Dozen – Frank and Lillian Gilbreth work at home, and raise 12 children. (1950 version, remade in 2003 with Steve Martin as Frank)
What About Bob? (1991)  A psychiatrist working at home (Richard Dreyfus and Bill Murray)
Carrie in Sex and the City (movie and TV series) – she is a home-based writer
Funny Farm (1988)- Chevy Chase …read more

I used my Random Number generator to come up with the winner – #20!  (Just to be clear if you are counting,  I skipped the “pingback.”)  I have sent that person an email.  If I don’t hear from her within 24 hours, I’ll contact the next person.  And so on.
UPDATE:  No sooner did I send the email to the winner, than I received a reply. That was FAST!  She was certainly excited.
Thanks for  playing.  I will have another contest right after the first of the year, for another great piece of home office equipment.

Today (Sunday, December 14) is the last day to enter the Home Biz Notes Work at Home “Holiday Shipping” Contest.  The prize is a DymoTwinTurbo LabelWriter® to help you with all your shipping needs.
The details:
1.  Go to my December 5 post and enter your comment and a valid email address.  Your comment MUST include details on how you would use the LabelWriter® for labels and stamps.  (Check out the details on the December 5 and December 8 posts.
2.  The deadline is December 14 at 11:59 p.m.  Only U.S. entries, please – I’m paying for the shipping.
I’ll announce the winner after …read more

I haven’t participated in Blog Carnivals in the past, but I decided to try it.  Home Biz Notes got a featured (top) spot on Empowered Mom’s “Work at Home Blog Carnival.”
Lots of the other posts look interesting.  I’m going to check them out….
If you find anything interesting, let me know.

My daughter-in-law stopped by this weekend and was salivating over the LabelWriter® prize in the “Holiday Shipping” contest.  She did ask a couple of questions about the types of labels you can use and about the stamps feature.  We found out:
What kind of labels can you print on the LabelWriter® “Twin Turbo”?  Here is a list: address labels, shipping/mailing labels, internet postage, file folder labels, media labels (disk, vhs spine, and audiocassette), price tag labels, name badges , appointment/business cards (for medical offices).
How does the stamps software work?   You will need to set up an account with Endicia, a …read more

 The Postal Service will deliver 19 billion pieces of mail and packages this holiday season.  For your home business, that means a lot of shipping!  If your work-at-home business means running back and forth to the post office, I have a great contest for you.
I received a LabelWriter® “Twin Turbo” from Dymo as a promotion.  The LabelWriter® (value $179.95) prints labels and stamps,  and I will give it as a prize to one of my readers. This is a great prize!  I received it earlier this week and, of course, I opened the package and looked at it.  But …read more

HomeBizNotes.com 

As I sat in the airport watching passengers deplane or hurry along the concourse toward their gates, I wondered at the state of dress these days. Even people who obviously were carrying business briefcases or computer bags seemed to delight in baggy sweatshirts and jeans with holes.
Yes, there were a number in business dress, either professional or dressy casual. However, so many seemed dressed in drab colors and tattered clothes. Gone are the days, when I was growing up, that whenever we left the farm, we got out of our jeans and overalls and wore something neat and without holes. (I even …read more

HomeBizNotes.com
In a previous Thursday Thirteen post, 13 Types of Home Businesses to Consider, I realized I’d named mainly off line businesses or those that combined online with a shop or office in the home.
Today, I’ll suggest thirteen that are predominately online ventures.
These are suggestions and ideas others find successful. You might use one of these as a springboard and adapt it to your talents and facilities.
1. Freelance writing (many different types to pursue here)
2. Operating an online store with any number of diverse products
3. Selling used books affiliated with Amazon or other bookstore outlets
4. Writing, publishing and selling e-books
5. …read more