Working from Home - 5 Reasons Why I Started My Home-Based Business

Making the decision to start my home-based business was one of the easiest, and the hardest, decisions I have ever made. The reasons it was difficult were mainly streaming from a natural fear of failure; the chance that it "won't work". Once I made peace with my inner fear of starting a home-based business, I was able to logically list the reasons why a home-based business would benefit me - and my family.

1. Income vs Expenses

Let's face it, if you work outside your home, there are expenses associated with working any job. Gas, lunch, wardrobe, and childcare are just some basic actual costs to working outside the home. When your commute doesn't take you out your front door, when youare the one watching your children, and when lunch comes from your groceries, you are bound to save money.

2. Quality of Life

Other "costs" associated with working away from home are those things that can't be accounted for with numbers or a spreadsheet. Simple quality of life can be missed out when away from home for so many hours each day. Family time, time with your spouse, and the ability to go to your children's school functions are all some enjoyable quality of life experiences that tend to be missed when working away from home.

3. Tax benefits

Who doesn't need a break on their income taxes? Owning a home-based business offers opportunities for tax benefits that wouldn't be available as an employee for someone else. Tax benefits alone can save my family thousands of dollars each year. Always check with a professional regarding your personal situation with your home based business.

4. Flexibility

This was a big positive factor when choosing to work from home for me. In some ways, this falls under the "Quality of Life" perspective. To me, having flexibility meant more than being able to be available for others, it also meant greater ability to do things on my schedule... not another's schedule. Simple household tasks that used to be bundled together and crushed into a weekend, such as laundry and cleaning, are now broken down through-out the week by my schedule. This additional option of flexibility expanded on the quality of life factor.

5. Feeling of Personal Freedom

This factor was listed on my original "pros and cons" list, however I wasn't fully aware of the impact this would have until after I actually started living it with my home based business. So many people walk through life feeling as if their every move is dictated by the needs and schedules of others. In many ways, this feeling is accepted by us as we move through our 9-5 days (or longer) missing our children's ballgames and events at school. We have become accepting of being too tired at the end of the day to enjoy time with our spouse. Operating my home-based business has lifted that pressure and filled me with a sense of personal freedom to enjoy my life.

Yes, I work hard every day at my home-based business. Many days I find I am actually working harder than I have ever worked for an employer. Oddly, it also feels less like work and more like personal satisfaction and success.

While a home-based business may not be for everyone, I feel it is an option that each household should consider. With the increasing technology of the internet, and more and more homes having access to it, there are also that many more opportunities for people of all interests and abilities.