Seven things that you need to know the company's sales

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1. Alternatives to Selling

The IPO

If you business is large enough, you can consider an initial public offering (IPO) in which you will sell your company's shares publicly on the open market. This can be a good alternative to selling the business, but IPO's require the outlay of large sums of money that may be out of reach for your company. If you have money available to finance an IPO, research the IPOs of similar-size companies in your field and look at their track record and whether they experienced accelerated growth.

An IPO for your company will mean that you will lose a significant amount of control. You will be face outside investors, strict Securities and Exchange Commission regulations and record-keeping rules. Your company information will become a matter of public record.

Selling Corporate Assets

Sometimes it becomes difficult to cut back or restructure your business into a smaller business by selling some of your corporate assets, but this may be the best alternative to selling the business outright. If you consider selling off part of your business, hire an outside financial advisor to appraise your assets and determine a fair market price for the assets you are considering selling. Choose assets that are not directly tied to your core business. Choose assets for which there is a strong market. Obtain input from legal and accounting experts.

2. Ways to Determine The Value of Your Business

If you decide that you must sell your business, there are a number of ways to value your company and determine your selling price.

Informal and formal appraisals

Find out the selling prices of similar businesses in your area and compare their companies to yours. You can also contact the national trade association for your industry. You can also hire a professional business appraiser. This method is the most credible and your potential buyers will be more likely to accept the formal appraisal.

Market-based valuation

One commonly used method of valuation is based upon past experiences selling of similar businesses. A business broker may recommend an asking price based on the sale prices of similar businesses in your area and industry. This is similar to find comparable sales for residential real estate, and it is the least expensive. It is commonly used for the sale of small businesses.

Asset-based valuation

Your business assets may be considered at book value to determine the liquidation value of the business. The result is a fire-sale price that will be the bare minimums value.

Earnings-based valuation

Your company's historical financial results will be considered and future income projections will be calculated and multiplied times a "Cap Rate," the interest rate usually earned in the market.

Price Building

Price building is a valuation method that looks at the assets, leases, real estate, and goodwill of the business. It considers the value of the tangible assets on the balance sheet and the valuable intangibles that create the company's value in determining the amount a buyer would be expected to pay for the business. The intangibles include location, unique product or service, profitability, favorable lease, goodwill, and good employees. The tangible assets will be real estate, equipment, and inventory.

After you inventory the tangible assets and calculate their value, you will estimate a value for the intangible assets. The rule of thumb for valuing these intangibles is that their combined value should be approximately one year's net income. Add together the value for the tangible assets, the intangible assets, the agent's commission, and other costs of sale to calculate your asking price.

Return on investment (ROI)

Consider your annual business net profit to calculate the buyer's return on investment. Divide your net profit by the buyer's original cash investment, and the result is the return on investment. The typical ROI is 12 to 25 percent. The higher the ROI, the higher the sales price is likely to be.

3. Prepare Your Business for Sale

Prepare in advance

The best results come from an owner who starts preparing his or her business for sale at least one year in advance. The owner should carefully review the financial statements and have a cleare understanding of the company's revenue and growth potential.

Prepare company records and contracts

All company records must be entered to clearly document all company transactions so that potential buyers can review and evaluate the company's financial status. Examine all supplier and customer contracts to be sure that their terms and conditions will not require renegotiation by the new owner and to be sure that they are financially good for the company. Review your real estate leases to find out if they require renegotiation upon sale. Analyze the equipment leases and other material contracts from the buyer's perspective.

Write a policies and procedures manual and consider employees

Create a procedures manual that documents the best way to run the business and deal with its employees. Remember the importance of keeping key employees during a sale and whether they will be crucial to the new owner's success. If they are, the new owner will want to know which employees will stay with the company after the sale. Have a company meeting to explain to employees that your are selling the business and tell them what effect the sale will have on their jobs.

Evaluate and update company assets

Do a complete inventory or all assets, equipment, and inventory. If your computer systems are obsolete, upgrading the system will make it easier to sell your business. If company assets include real estate, decide whether you should or sell the real estate before the company is listed for sale.

4. Legal Consequences of Selling a Business

Disclosure

You must make a complete disclosure to the buyer about all aspects of the business.

Open up the books for inspection. Show them all leases and other relevant contracts. Do not withhold any information from a potential buyer. Your failure to disclose material information could be considered fraud.

Will the Bulk Sales Law Apply to your business?

"Bulk sales" laws were enacted to prevent business owners from defrauding creditors by transferring their assets to another individual or entity to keep their assets away from creditors. When one corporation receives the assets of another company, it is expected to assume its debts and accountable for the debts. If, however, one business transfers all of its assets to another business, but the receiving business does not assume all of the debts, you must consult an attorney to be sure you comply with the law.

5. Collect Outstanding Accounts Receivable

Create an aggressive collections plan

You should make collections a top priority and devise a systematic method for collections. Put your collections plan in writing and share it with the employees who are part of the collections team. Make sure everyone consistently carries out the plan. Contact your past-due account holders by email to remind them that their account is overdue. Tell them how many days they are late and the precise amount that they owe.Ask recipients to acknowledge your e-mail. If you do not receive a response on your first e-mail, send another email advising them that you will contact your attorney.

Hire a collections agency or attorney

Hiring a collections agency as a last resort may be the only way to recover your money. When you create your aggressive collections plan, collect some names of reputable firms and make some initial inquiries to know what to expect. Their fees will be between 25 and 40 percent of the amounts collected. If you have very large overdue accounts, you may want to hire a collections attorney with experiece in collecting outstanding accounts receivable.

6. Define your priorities

Sales price and terms

Decide exactly what you want from the sale. Do you have to have an all-cash deal or can you finance part of the sale price? Is it important to you that the buyer continue your business traditions? Decide on the minimum price that you will take. Do you have to have a lump sum at closing or can you accept payments over time?

Time your decision to sell

When the national economy is strong and your business is having its best year, you will receive the highest dollar value for your business. keep an eye on what the national economy is doing and be flexible about when you will sell. Sell early if you can avoid being caught up in a bad economic cycle.

Prepare to sell

The average time for a businesses to sell is approximately one year. Start planning two years in advance of the date you want to sell. Also, prepare your business for the sale by cleaning, painting, and doing whatever you can do to make your business premises more attractive. Keep your clean and attractive every day, because you never know when a potential buyer will drive by.

Get professional help

Do not make the mistake of thinking that you can sell your business without help from professionals. In the course of the sale, there are numerous federal, state, local, and tax issues to consider. Use your time wisely and spend your time running your business successfully to increase its sales appeal. Ask for help from your accountant; lawyer; business broker; and business appraiser.

7. Consider the tax consequences

How income is taxed

If you owned your business for at least one year, the increased value of your business will be taxed as a long-term capital gain at approximately 20 percent. If you owned your business for less than one year, the increased value will be taxed as personal income at more than 30 percent. When you sell the company's assets, they are classified as capital assets and will be taxed as long-term capital gain or ordinary income. When you sell inventory, the proceeds will be classified and taxed as ordinary income or loss.

As you prepare your business for sale, you should make succession-management plans. Prepare the firm's next generation of leadership to include capable managers. The absence of a succession strategy is considered to be a company weakness. The lack of a practical succession plan can complicate a potential IPO, discourage a buyout, and be less desirable for underwriters or institutional investors.

Jo Ann Joy, Esq., MBA, CEO

The future of your business starts here!

You may contact Jo Ann by phone at (602) 663-7007, by fax at (602) 324-7582, by email at joannjoy@Indigo Business Solutions.net, and by mail at 2313 East Ocotillo Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85016. I have many published articles, and I will send any article to you free of charge. Most consultations are free.

For information about other important legal, tax, and business topics, free copies of articles, or EBooks, please visit our website at http://www.IndigoBusinessSolutions.net Copyright 2006. All rights reserved. Indigo Business Solutions is a registered trade name.

Jo Ann Joy is a strategic business attorney and the CEO and owner of Indigo Business Solutions. Indigo Business Solutions is a “one stop shop” for businesses. We differ from other business consulting firms, because we offer legal and business counseling. We work with our clients to create value and gain competitive advantage.

Jo Ann has a law degree, an MBA, and a degree in Economics. Her legal background includes commercial, corporate, bankruptcy and real estate law. She has expertise in accounting, business planning and strategies, mortgage lending, marketing, and product development.

Jo Ann ran a successful business for 10 years, and she is a published author on many different legal and business subjects. Her company, Indigo Business Solutions, strives to help businesses make decisive improvements. It is our goal to inspire enterprising people to make their goals a reality. If you are not getting what you want from your business or if you want to reach higher goals, please visit our website [http://www.IndigoBusinessSolutions.net] to see how we can help you.

Considerations before you start your own company

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Deciding which small business to invest in is only part of the equation. The first and most important step is finding a business that's right for your personality, which has a direct effect on your entrepreneur style and how successful you will be with your business.

Determining your entrepreneur style requires that you take an honest look at your business skills and motives for starting your business. For example, if you don't like social settings and aren't comfortable speaking with people, it's not a good idea to invest in a company that requires constant face to face interaction with the buyer. Some companies to consider starting if you fall in this category may be housekeeping, commercial window washing, lawn care and even janitorial services.

If, on the other hand, you enjoy networking and speaking to others, direct sales (business to business or business to consumer) services may be best suited for you. In addition to your personality and entrepreneur style, there are several other areas to consider before starting your own business.

Ease of Entry - Industries and businesses vary in respect to the ease with which new competitors can enter. Some barriers of entry to consider would be over-saturation of businesses already offering the product you are looking to offer. Another main barrier to entry is cost. Will you have to save up or take out a serious loan before you know what type of profit to expect? What about cost of education or licenses? These are all serious questions to consider. That's why some of the best small businesses don't require much capital or experience and there is still ample growth in the industry for you and several other business owners. However, just because a good business doesn't require much capital or experience to start doesn't mean you will not have to eventually devote some time and capital developing your knowledge and experience in the field. To continue to grow and provide the best service, you will need to invest some of your profits back into the business and yourself.

Start-up Capital - Many small businesses call for thousands of dollars to get started. Many of us want a business to free up our time and bring in the necessary income to support our families. Businesses that require massive capital take much longer for the business owner to realize a return on income. They also require much more devotion of time away from family and other leisure activities. There are several small business owners with franchised restaurants and other business that did require a lot of capital that are now nicely reaping the benefits of all the hard work they put into it. However, many will also tell you that it came at a great price - time with family, friends and sacrifice of self-development. What's strange is these are the exact reasons why individuals start their own businesses.

Before starting your own business make sure to develop a well thought out business plan that outlines what you expect to gain from this business and what resources, including time, money, etc. you plan to use or will need to really make your business profitable and bring to you the free time and other benefits you desire.

Ability to Make Money when not Present - In order for you to own your business and it not own you, you must find a way to make sure that your actions can be replicated. Whether it's an insurance agency, a flower shop or network marketing company, it's very important that you be able to leave that business for a day or even a month and know that it'll still run smoothly and make money for you.

To do this, it's imperative to have a system in place that allows your business to continue without your presence. You can do this by hiring employees and developing that will enable your workers to become copy cats of what you do and bring to the business in regards to service and profits. All employees, through the resources they provide, should in some way bring value and profits to your business. If they do not, you should either train them or terminate their position.

One important thing to consider in order to encourage your employees to bring profit to the business would be to reward them with incentives for certain behaviors, like great customer service or specific sales results. Determine what type of incentives will motivate your employees and what type of actions you would like reward. Estimate, track and compare the cost of incentives, as well as the other expenses associated with hiring an employee, to the profits gained by the business from the employee.

Another option is to consider looking into a business that has a proven system for doing business and making money without the expense of hiring employees. In other words, find a business you can replicate or copy that uses an automated, electronic email or internet marketing campaign. Remember though that even though you may save by not hiring employees, you will more than likely have a higher marketing expense than other small businesses. If you're not sure about the cost of this type of campaign, do a search on the internet to compare prices of companies that offer this type of service. If you chose this option, it's good to have at least three different types of automated leads coming into your business. For example, take note of the monthly cost for postcard, survey or email marketing campaigns. This will give you an idea of what type of expenses to expect if you choose this route. No matter what you decide, make sure you have plan that will enable you to grow your business without tying you to the office or computer all day.

Businesses that keep giving through "Residuals"! - The very best businesses keep rewarding you with profits by either providing you with return business or residuals. Residual income is profits that keep paying you over and over at certain intervals as a result of the customer continuing to use your service or product. With many businesses, nothing further is needed by you other than a great product. The business keeps renewing because the customers value the product, need the product and can't get better service, prices, etc. through any other company. Even though these business and services are definitely out there, I encourage you to always strive to provide superior service. If something in the market or industry changes, this ensures that the majority of your customers will continue to stay with your company not only because they value the product but also because they greatly value the service. With other businesses it's a given that you'll need to continually service your customers to keep the business and keep getting paid residuals. The key is in duplicating your work habits by either hiring an employee or having some type of system in place that provides service and products through an automated service.

The Product - First and foremost, the product(s) being sold have to be good stand-alone products. This means that the product could sell on its own because people actually need and desire this type of product. There are countless of network marketing and direct sales companies that are built only on the compensation plan or creating downlines, and not on the product itself. Run very fast from these types of companies. If the product or service is not valuable enough to sell on its own, you're going to have a very difficult time building and growing that business.

Attitude - Finally, you have to be passionate about whatever you're selling or doing. If you are, you'll be more eager to share your business and service with others. You can not be successful if you do not have pride in what you're offering. For this reason, choose a business which provides a service or product that helps others or brings joy in some way to their lives. I would personally like to thank all the pizza shops in Indianapolis. They bring so much joy to my life because nothing makes me happier than a good slice of pizza. Do you see where I'm going? Your idea or business doesn't have to change the world but if there are people out there that you know would get value and joy out of whatever it is you're offering, then that's a big step.

To really choose a business that will be profitable, take a close look at what you're getting into and what you may have to sacrifice for the business. Sometimes, the business you always dreamed that would free up your time and give you the life you always wanted, can actually rob you of the things you value most.

Anitra Myrick is a mother, mentor and business owner. She provides a mentorship program to help her customers and small business owners with self-development and spiritual enlightenment. She owns an Insurance Agency and is a Business Owner with AmeriPlan. For more information about Anitra and her businesses, please visit http://www.deliveringonthepromise.com/myricksbenefits and http://www.farmersagent.com/amyrick

7 Things A Business coach will work for you.

Five Things You Need to remember before starting Small Business

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Everyone knows someone who has decided to go into small business but did you know that 70% of all small businesses fail within the first 12 months of operation. In some countries that failure rate is as high as 85 to 90%. Small Business is one of the toughest industries you can ever decide to take on and most people who go into small business go into it for the wrong reason.

I have started 4 small businesses over the last 10 years and every single one of them has been started from scratch and survived into a thriving business. Just recently I have decided to sell one of the businesses off cause it had done what I expected it to do which is the first issue you need to think about.

Issue 1. Have a Clear Understanding of What You Want To Achieve In Your Business

The majority of people, who actually go into business, go into it for the wrong reasons. Even I have been guilty of that. So what is this wrong reason, most people start a small business because they believe they can do a better job then their current boss. Maybe this is true, maybe it is not but what most people really want is better working conditions and better pay. No one can blame you for wanting that. If that is all you want, then I strongly suggest you stay away from small business.

One of the key issues you must remember before evening thinking about starting a small business is this. Do you know what your business will look like? If you were walking down the street, how would you want to be found? What impression do you want to give to your clients? What clearly do you what to achieve in this business?

The second clear understanding you must have of your business is, when will you know when it is finished? When you have built what you want to achieve and more importantly, how will you get out?

See most people when they go into business have no exit strategy and that is one of the worst things you can do. Before you ever start a business, the first thing you must work out is how you are going to get out of the business.

Two years ago, I started a small car cleaning business. My wife and I both started it because she wanted to see if she could build a business. Our exit strategy was to sell the business once it was done. How we would sell it was something we were not sure of?

See we could have taken a number of approaches to this. Our exit strategy could have been to franchise the business, sell it to a single owner or to float it on the stock market. We chose that we only wanted to sell it to another owner, but we still built the business in such a way that there was still plenty of growth and opportunity in the business for the new owner, but we had removed the risk for them on how to run the business by clearly documenting everything they needed to do to run that business.

Before ever starting a business, always think about how you will exit the business, when you have achieved your objective for that business. If you do not have an exit strategy in mind, then you will never get out of the business.

Issue 2. Keep a Strict Schedule

Small business is consuming. Unlike in large corporations where you can hire many people to do a range of tasks, small business requires the small business owner to do many of the tasks themselves. Some of the tasks include doing your books, lodging trademarks, doing the ordering etc. Often when you start in small business, you can not afford to hire people to do these tasks.

What I have personally found is that if you do not keep a tight schedule and document your meetings and tasks you have to do then it will not take very long before you will be swamped by all the things you have to do in the business every day. It is this phenomenon that often leads small business owners to quit and fail in the first twelve months. Let me tell you this, the warning signs that this is starting is when you say to your wife on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon that you are going down to the office to catch up on paperwork for a few hours. Once you get into this habit, you will never stop doing it and the business will consume you really quickly.

I strongly recommend all small business owners keep a diary. My preference is to use Microsoft Outlook, simply because it includes a calendar and you can make sure that each day you schedule your work plus your appointments to make sure you do not forget anything. If you do this, then you will find over time you can get through this plus you will learn how long it should take to do the various jobs that make up your business and whether it is worthwhile in getting someone to actually do those tasks for you.

Issue 3. Build Your Own Mastermind Group

I read a book a little while ago called Think and Grow Rich and is written by a gentleman called Napoleon Hill and he talks about the thirteen secrets to success and obscene wealth. One of the things that I learned both from this book and being a small business owner was that I needed a Mastermind Group.

The Mastermind Group is simply a group of professionals who can help me achieve my objectives for my business. Literally anyone can be part of your mastermind group and some of those would be people like a lawyer, an accountant and other people like your peers who can help you in building your business but it may also include people who are not in business as well to help you keep that balance. The Mastermind Group are really those people you turn to for advice and direction. You do not necessarily have to take their advice but a good mastermind group will allow you run through scenarios on what is happening and the potential outcomes.

Issue 4. Have one night when you do something on your own for you!

One of the big issues that I have had over the last ten years is that I have not been doing every single week is something on my own but I say that I am in the process of changing that. Often when you start in business, with the excitement of building your own business you get so consumed that you forget about a life outside of your business and your business becomes your life.

This is really not a good thing nor is it healthy. Even multi-billionaires do things for themselves outside of business. Look do not get me wrong, business is fantastic and fun and can be both enjoyable and a nightmare however there are other things out there outside of business.

When you start a small business, do not neglect your sports, do not neglect doing something social, if you do, in the long run you will find that you business suffers. Plus, in small business it is very easy to become bitter and twisted but by maintaining those none business activities it will help you to balance your life.

Issue 5. Don't neglect Your Partner or your Family

I would love to see the divorce statistics for small business owner's because I am quite sure that the divorce rate in small business would have to be about 70 or 80%. The majority of married couples (and I am talking about 90% of the small business people I Know) that I know who have gone into small business in their 30's have actually been divorced within 18 months of them starting the business.

Look there are lots of reasons why this happens, but in a lot of the cases, the partner who has gone into business neglects their family and money gets tight. In the partners case it is not their fault it is simply because the person gets consumed into the business and they forget they have a life outside of the business.

If you have a family, make sure that you do at least one activity a week as a family. Whether it is having a family night at home such as a video night or games night, or even just going to the park to play once a week, make sure that you do it. PLUS, you must ensure that at least one night a week must be for just you and your partner. If you do not do that your marriage or relationship will suffer.

One thing I share with all the people who come through our training business is that if you want to go into business that is cool but you must be prepared to accept two things -

1. You must be prepared to start from scratch if your business does not work

that is you must be prepared to start with just the shirt on your back.

2. You must have 100% support of your partner and family

If you cannot accept these two things, then do not go into business because too many people who I see that start on this journey fail and end up miserable and have such a downward spiral which leads them to doing something silly, like take up drinking, drugs or try to commit suicide. Remember, 70% of all small businesses fail within the first 12 months. If you were a betting man would you back something that only had a 30% chance of winning, not likely, yet people still go into small business.

The bottom line is this, small business can be the most awesome ride of your life, but it can be also the most difficult and when you choose to go into small business, take your time and plan what you want to achieve. Remember the old saying if your Fail to Plan, you Plan to Fail.

Our team at the One-on-One Learning Center provides Business Training Courses throughtout Australia as well as online training courses such as our Copywriting Courses. Check out our Meditation Music to help you master this important program.

7 things every Home Business Entreprenuer Needs To Know

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Looking back on many unsuccessful attempts at home business, we wish we had received guidance from someone who had already been down the road we wanted to travel. We had so many failures that we were starting to doubt that success in a home business would ever happen for us.

Thankfully, we didn't give up and through perseverance we were able to achieve the success that had eluded us for years. Along the way we discovered many things that we wish we had known when we started this journey.

Our success has literally transformed our lives. We believe that to whom much has been given, much is required. Consider this information our gift to you. If we can be of assistance please, do not hesitate to fill out the contact form at TheHomeBusinessPodcast.

1. Success doesn't happen overnight.

For some reason people think that they should become rich in a few months with their new home business and some people believe success should happen within weeks or days! We introduced a man in his early 50's to our business and he was excited. When we first met he complained that he had been working hard for more than 30 years and he was broke.

He said he never had any time for himself or his family. We told him what it would take to become successful and he agreed to do it. Then, he disappeared. A few weeks later he called to tell me that he was quitting. He hadn't even started and here he was ready to give up.

We asked him if he would be better off quitting his full-time job and keeping his home business! Of course, we didn't really mean that he should quit his job, but he had been working full-time for more than 30 years and he was still broke. He started his home business just a few weeks earlier and he never gave it a chance.

Why is it that so many people think that they should become wealthy in a few weeks? The answer probably lies in all the get rich quick schemes that are so prevalent in our society today. You've seen the emails or read these lines in your junk mail. No Selling, We Do All The Work For You, Make $30,000 in 90 days and on and on.

Those get rich quick scams cause people to think that every home business is a scam and that's not true. We just got off the phone with Doug, a nice guy who is seriously considering our home business. During our conversation we made it clear that he wouldn't be rich in 60 or 90 days and his response was the kind of response we hear often, "Thanks for telling me the truth. I'm happy to know that I'm dealing with people of integrity."

We were frustrated so many times in the first year of our home business that quitting seemed like the sensible thing to do. After all, these things don't work. Who do you think you are? Why don't you just get a job like everybody else? These thoughts and many like them nearly kept us from success.

If you already have a home business, perhaps you are facing the same thoughts. Don't let the negative thoughts crowd out the life changing success that a home business offers. Sure, we struggled at first, but after 20 months we were making $100,000 a year in lifetime residual income! When you find yourself facing bankruptcy and foreclosure as we were and then apply for food stamps you have a firm grasp on the tough times life can bring.

Occasionally, we'll say "What If?" As in, what if we hadn't stuck it out through the hard times? What if we had taken the advice of supposedly well meaning people who said that we would never have success in a home business?

What if it took you two to four years to become successful in a home business? What if you could make $100,000 without a boss and a job to go to? What if you could actually be home for your children and know them as people instead of looking at them as the little people who live in your house?

Most people who start a home business quit in their first 90 days and go back to their dreadful lives of desperation. Most people aren't really living. They are only existing. They're going from one day to the next without any hope of a better life. Benjamin Franklin said "most people die at 18, we just don't bury them until they turn 65."

2. Success doesn't happen without work.

I talked to a woman who said she was interested in changing her life. When it was time for her to make a decision she asked me, "Do I have to do anything?" "No" I replied, "once a month we just back the money truck up to your house and unload!"

If you had a traditional business you'd have to open your business every day. If you have a job you've got to show up if you want to get paid. When you start a home business you can't simply sign up and expect the money to start being deposited in your bank account. There's work to be done.

Is it hard to become successful in a home business? Compared to giving all of the best years of your life to your employer and missing birthdays, anniversaries, your child's first words, your child's first steps and realizing that life is nearly over and in your golden years you don't have the money to do the things you want to do, no it really isn't that hard at all!

If you're in a business like ours when you employ leverage, getting paid for other people's efforts, you can enjoy the fruits of your labor so much more. Even if you have a home business where you do all the work it's better than working for an employer.

We are convinced that to live a great life your home business must employ the leverage concept. It's the only way you can have money and the time to enjoy it. The wealthiest people in America became wealthy by owning businesses. The businesses that created great wealth were out in front of a trend and the business owner got paid based on the efforts of thousands of people. We wouldn't be enjoying the life we live today if we were getting paid only on our own efforts.

We worked really hard with very little success in our first year. Our 2nd year was the breakthrough that we were looking for, success was on the way. What we failed to realize was that during our first 12 months we were improving our skills and our confidence and that's when success started to happen.

So, how much did we work in our first two years? We worked as much as it took. How much should you work your home business? That depends on a variety of factors. How bad do you want it? How fast do you want to achieve success? We recommend that you work your home business a minimum of 7 to 10 hours a week, and do it consistently for at least two years.

Success doesn't happen without work and it isn't limited to working your business. Are you committed to improving your skills and working on you? Read at least 10 pages from a great book every day. Books like "Think and Grow Rich" will change the way you think and when you change the way you think you will change your life.

Expecting success without work from your home business is like expecting a paycheck from a job that you never started. It just doesn't make sense.

3. You must be disciplined to achieve success.

So, you're working your new home business and a friend calls offering to take you to lunch. Can you afford to go? Your favorite show is on TV, but you know you need to be working your home business, what will you do? Perhaps the biggest adjustment most of us need to make is to be disciplined in our home business.

Let's face it in a work environment there is usually supervision. Many people fail in a home business because there's nobody looking over their shoulder to see that they do what they need to do.

Since most people who start a home business have never owned a business, we must learn to be disciplined, if we're going to operate a successful home business. There were times when somebody told us no and that was devastating. We'd usually mope around and fail to do anything else the rest of the day. Had we maintained that attitude, we'd have a job right now instead of an successful home business!

Consider setting business hours. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule, but asking friends and family members to respect your business and your business hours is an important step to success. We've got a good friend who makes more than $100,000 a year and when you come over to his house during business hours you can visit with his wife, but he excuses himself and works his business. If you have a small child, work when he or she is napping and when they are in bed at night.

It's also a good idea to have a permanent work space, so you can shut the door, eliminate distractions and get your work done.

This is a difficult adjustment for some people to make, but your children can learn that when Mommy or Daddy is in this room with the door shut that they are working. You'd be amazed at how many children will respect your space and time if you ask them too. We've seen many successful stay at home moms and dads work with children nearby. Don't let screaming children or children that interrupt you on occasion become a big deal, the person on the other end of the phone may be convinced that your business is right for them BECAUSE they hear your children in the background.

When you promise to call somebody back at a certain time you've got to find the time. Children will appreciate knowing why Mommy or Daddy isn't available at certain times and you can explain to them that it will be worth all the sacrifices once you become successful.

Discipline can be difficult with all the distractions that can occur in your home, but it is one ingredient that you must have to become successful.

4. Who you're involved with is more important than the business you're in.

Let's face it, most people don't really have a clue how to operate a business, any kind of business not just a home business. When we're young we are told to go to school to get good grades so we can get a good... JOB! That's exactly the path most of us start on, get a job, work hard, work long hours and try to get a promotion so we can work more hours and hopefully make more money.

We do that for 10, 20 or 30 years and then realize that we are never going to get ahead. That's when the idea that a home business could change our life hits most of us. We've been told to be good employees and that's what most of us have done all of our lives.

There is no substitute for leadership. If you are blessed to find somebody who has been successful in a home business and you know that they can sincerely help you change your life forever, you should jump at the chance to work with them. Make sure you're comfortable with them before you get started. So, what should you look for? You should look for somebody that knows exactly what they are doing. When you ask questions are they comfortable or uncomfortable? Do they have a system that you can plug in to and have immediate success?

One of the reasons I failed in other home businesses is that I didn't understand the importance of finding the right person to work with. I am not blaming my failures on somebody else, but if I had been associated with people who really knew what they were doing they would have given me guidance that I did not get. Perhaps I would have failed anyway, but there is no doubt that working with successful people will cut your learning curve and save you a lot of time and money. Only you can assure your success, but finding the right person to work with and then listening to that person gives you a tremendous advantage over most people working business from their homes!

Let's say you have what you think is a great idea and you've got a little extra money stashed away for a rainy day. Your spouse isn't overly supportive, but he or she wants you to succeed. You decide to invest $1,000 or $2,000 in your new business by taking out an ad in a local magazine. You get no response at all. How do you think your spouse feels about your home business now? That kind of mistake destroys most people and they never recover.

Last week I received an email from a so called marketing guru offering his services. I could get his marketing expertise if I paid him almost $800. Almost everything he offered we give to our team members for FREE! We know that what we're doing works for our business because it has been tested and proven to be successful or we wouldn't do it. His material, although similar to ours, hasn't been tested in our business and could prove to be a waste of both time and money. What would happen if you sent that $800 and it didn't work? How supportive would your spouse be then?

5. Technology has changed everything.

Many years ago you had to get out and meet people and most business was done face to face. You could call people around the country, but if they had any interest in your business you had to send a package overnight. That proved to be very expensive.

When we were broke, I thought everybody that sounded serious, was serious. I was sending out packages several times a week only to find that these people weren't serious at all.

Then, the internet changed everything. You don't have to meet people face to face anymore, although I must admit it's still my favorite way of doing business. Today, you can upload a video in seconds, so people can see you. You can send an email with links to websites, videos and your contact information. Auto responders make you look like a Fortune 500 company, and nobody knows how big your business really is because anybody anywhere can have a great looking website.

When I started my business more than 10 years ago my long distance phone bill was nearly $1,000 a month, today we can call as much as we want for $20! You can use conference calling and web casts to present your business to hundreds of people at a time.

People can automatically receive your latest Pod cast and watch it in the subway or at lunch. This is the information age and you should capitalize on the shift in technology in your home business. Don't worry about all the latest gadgets when you start your business because the personal touch will always be important. Even if you don't have a lot of money technology allows your home business to operate and look like a very big business.

Don't get too preoccupied with technology. You can, however, use it to enhance your image and your productivity if you know what you are doing. Today, we don't mail anybody any information regarding our home business. With internet access almost everywhere, we realize that if somebody needs us to mail them something, they probably aren't the person we were looking for.

6. It's a home business, but that doesn't mean it can't be a big business.

Most people that start a home business are looking for an extra $300 to $500 a month. What would an extra $50,000 or $100,000 a year do for you and your family, seriously! Maybe it's because so many of us have failed so many times that we just don't believe in ourselves anymore.

Once you understand the basic fundamentals of your new home business and once you've achieved some success, you'll understand that the sky is the limit. We make much more money than we ever thought possible and we have friends that are making more than $1,000,000 a year! Hard to believe? Of course it is! Just because it's hard to believe doesn't mean that it isn't happening.

After we struggled at so many other businesses I wanted to believe that we could become incredibly successful, but my past was holding me back. Today, we operate a home business that generates almost $10,000,000 in annual sales! Years ago I never knew anybody that made $1,000,000 a year, so it was hard for me to "see" myself ever reaching that milestone. When a good friend of mine did it, I could then start to see that I could have that kind of success.

So, do you really want to struggle all your life? Then why do we settle for mediocrity? Here's why, we're unsure of ourselves, stuck in a rut, scared, we lack confidence, we tried and failed and tried and failed, what will my spouse, mother, brother, best friend think? We care too much about what other people say, think and do!

7. As a Man Thinketh...

As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. Joyce Meyer is fond of saying that where the mind goes, the man follows. Of course, it makes no difference whether you are a man or a woman, you are what you think you are. As we struggled in our home business it was easy to become discouraged. We had always failed. Those constant thoughts of failure surrounded us.

Then, we realized that others had succeeded. Why did they succeed where so many others had failed? Could it really be that the only reason they achieved success was that they thought differently? We were so broke and so desperate for a breakthrough in our lives that we realized that we could not afford the luxury of having negative thoughts. There were plenty of other negative people that we could have listened to, but what was that going to get us?

What if we listened to the people that were positive, which by the way were the same people who were achieving success? When we started our home business we felt like the biggest loser on the planet. If something positive didn't happen soon we were going to have to move out of state to live with Judith's mother. How were we going to explain to our children that we had lost our home? If our home business was going to change, we would have to change first.

We couldn't afford the luxury of one negative thought. We started making good choices. We would distance ourselves from anybody that had anything negative to say about anything! We would surround ourselves with positive, uplifting people who would speak life into our lives.

We didn't listen to people who laughed at us and yes, there really were people who laughed at us. We believed that we would have life changing success even before there were any real signs of success. Some people call that the "fake it till you make it" concept. While we wholeheartedly endorse that concept we do not recommend that you mislead people.

There is nothing wrong with having a positive attitude. It is wrong to misrepresent your current financial situation. One of the most disappointing things we encounter in home business is the tendency that people have to inflate their incomes. There must be some school of thought that this is appealing or O.K. and it is not.

Once you lose your integrity, you can never get it back. We have done everything we can to make it clear that a home business will not typically solve your financial pressures overnight. We know many people that have made $500 to $2,000 in their first month in a home business. Very few make more than that in their first 30 days. If you think you have to lie to become successful you are wrong. We made just over $300 our first month in the home business that has paid us more money than we ever thought possible.

Negative people tried to convince us that we would never have success. We didn't listen to them then, and we don't listen to negative people now. We know that you can have success in a home business. We know that it won't be easy. We know that if you get guidance along the way from successful people that you will live an extraordinary life.

Scott Miller and his wife Judith are blessed to have been married for almost 26 years. They have two children, 22 year old Brittany Rickaway (married to Nathan Rickaway in January 2006) and 18 year old Cody who will attend Dallas Baptist University in the fall of 2007. Scott, Judith, Brittany and Cody all work together in their home business. To download 5 FREE CD's that will change your life no matter what you choose to do go to http://www.getoutnow.com