TURN ANY HOBBY INTO A PART-TIME BUSINESS
If you are planning on beginning a business, your best bet is to start out
part-time while you are still earning a full-time income at your present
job. If you are like most people who are existing from payday to payday --
you don't have a lot of money to invest in a full-time business. No need to
worry! Just use your favorite hobby as your business base and grow from
there! There's no telling where you'll be at 2 or 3 years down the road.
Perhaps you can even tell your present boss to "take that job and shove
it." Wouldn't that be great?
Using your present hobby or favorite pastime as your business base has many
benefits. Why? Because ANY business you decide to become involved in should
be doing something you LOVE -- something you believe in -- something that
you would work at NO MATTER what income it would generate. This will give
you the stamina to see your business through the beginning hard times and
times when there is more work to do than you can handle. We all know the
feeling of doing a job that we hate to do. There is no way we can give it
110% of our abilities because we procrastinate getting through it and just
want to get it over with. That's why it is vitally important to dearly love
the product or service you have chosen to build your business around.
Do you like cooking? Start a recipe newsletter for others who like the same
thing and sell your recipes by publishing a simple booklet. Do you enjoy
making crafts? Sell them through mail order (be sure and mark up the price
for shipping and handling). Do you enjoy working on cars? Print and
distribute flyers in your neighborhood listing your prices. Offer a coupon
discount for the customer to use on their first auto repair job. Do you
enjoy writing? Write a small booklet or how-to manual and sell it through
mail order or to multi-level enthusiasts. Do you enjoy computer
programming? Write a program and sell through shareware groups or even to
mail order computer owners.
Yes -- just about anything you love doing can be magically transformed into
a business opportunity for you. Some items may only sell well in your
neighborhood, while some products and services do well in mail order. If
you decide to sell through mail order, all you need to do is write a simple
ad and have it typeset. Start out with a smaller 1-inch, 2-inch or 3-inch
ad. Ask the customer to send a "first-class stamp" or "$1.00" for more
information. When they write you, include a 8 1/2x11 sheet detailing your
prices. Make sure you have a small order form to make it easy to order your
product or service. And of course -- include a cover letter stating that
you appreciate their inquiry and look forward to doing business with them
in the near future. You'd be surprised how many sales have been lost
because a business didn't take the time to write a cover letter and
personalize the mailing.
Also, start educating yourself by reading and researching other home-based
businesses. Before I opened up my business I read national publications
like "Small Business Opportunities," "Entrepreneur," "Home Office
Computing," and "Spare Time Magazine." Although there were some full page
ads in there filled with hype (claiming to make me $1 million dollars with
a sheet of paper) -- the articles are excellent. Don't spend more than $3
for information in the beginning of your business because if a company is
legitimate you should be able to call them and discuss the opportunity over
the phone with them. Businesses that claim to put you in business overnight
should never demand a large amount of money from you. On the contrary --
legitimate businesses have nothing to hide and will not charge you more
than a few dollars in postage to learn the "whole" story behind their
claims. Instead -- use these publications, as well as books from the
library on starting a business to further your knowledge of the world.
Another good move on your part is to invest a few hours by attending a
meeting that is sponsored by SCORE from the Small Business Administration
in your area. It's free -- and the valuable information you obtain from
actual people who have been in business before is something that will be
extremely valuable in the months ahead. Just call the SBA to find out more
information.
Yes -- it's that easy! Of course, this is only the beginning. As with any
hobby, it will take time (probably many months) to realize a profit but
think of it this way: Most people that have a hobby know they have to spend
money to take part in their hobby. It only makes sense to invest money in
advertising your hobby to others so you can eventually make some of that
money back in sales for your own business!
