Research Your Business Idea

My last post about starting a home-based business had to do with identifying what you love. This really is the best place to start thinking about a business, because times will get tough, and loving what you do will be bring refreshment to your day.


Let's say you've decided on an idea. Before you take one step towards starting, my advice is to do your research.


For practical purposes, let's decide that you have always loved to decorate cakes, and want to start a custom cake company. Let's say you want to make beautiful cakes with fresh flowers and strings of fake pearls and have decided to call it "Elegant Cakes." What do you need to know before you invest in pans, decorating supplies and pink cake boxes?


You will need to know if you can legally do this in your house. To do that, start locally and move outwards, checking with every government and "governing" body - like a homeowner's association. Make a personal appointment to visit your city offices. If they've got a small business office, that's a great place to start. You'll need to check into a business license and tax license. Check your zoning regulations. Your city wants you to succeed because you'll be paying taxes, and that's a great benefit. Hopefully your city can help guide you on up the totem pole of government.

Since you'll be preparing food, you'll need to check on a license for that. You'll also have state tax taxes to pay. The responsibility falls on you to learn everything you can about what you need to know. So keep pushing until you are well educated about the legal requirement of starting a cake business.

There's also the step of registering your business name with the Corporation Commission. Do you want a website? Make sure you can register that as well. As you do your research you may discover other elements that your state requires, so please don't take my list as exact for your unique area.

This research won't cost you anything but time. However, it can save you lots of money in the future by avoiding breaking laws. Once you've done your legal research, compile all the requirements and costs in a master list.

The next research to do is on what it will actually cost you in supplies. You might not know some of this until you do the legal research. You might find that your state requires you to have a different dishwasher, or a different hot water heater. I'm just guessing at that, but I've seen similar requirement when setting up a professional kitchen. Then, make a comprehensive list of your baking and kitchen expenses to get started.


Finally, you'll need to advertise your business somehow. Even if it's a brochure and business cards printed off your computer. If you are really serious, you might want to advertise on some online directories. You might want to invest in a professional design of a logo (which I highly recommend) Perhaps you want to print up a pretty label to put on your logo. Brainstorm all the items you might need for this side of the business.

Then there will just be miscellaneous supplies and expenses, such as receipt books, credit card processing, bank fees, etc.


I realize that many people would prefer to avoid these steps. If you have been baking for friends, you know how easy it would be to charge $100 for a cake and pocket the cash. However, this really isn't the right way to run a business. It might work on a very occasional basis. But it's not a legal or ethical way to operate a true business.


To be a Christian business owner, I believe we need to respect and operate within the laws. Plus, once you have done all the steps to create your business, you will have a true investment in it. And, it will show your spouse you are serious about this.


So today's tip is to do your research. Once you have a true idea of what it will take to start your business, you'll need to figure out how to finance it. I'll talk about that next time.

In His Love,

Glynnis

The first step in starting a home-based business

As mentioned yesterday, I'll be starting a series on starting a home-based business.

There are many reasons for this being a timely topic. Here are a few. The first is obviously the economy. We are currently in difficult economic times, and there are no guarantees of any job. People who never thought they'd be unemployed are looking for a job. A home-based business is a great way to have some extra income, and can even be a full-time job at some time.

Another reason is that a home-based business can unite your family. Our kids are often involved in carrying boxes, wrapping up orders or helping to take inventory. Our business is a way my husband and I get to work together.

Finally, a home-based business is a way to utilize your God-given talents. Each of us have been entrusted with special skills. Scripture gives us many examples of the importance of being a good steward of everything God gives us. I believe there are many people who have talents and skills currently untapped. Those folks are working in jobs that have nothing to do with their particular gifts and skills. Then they end up feeling unappreciated and overlooked. The reality is they aren't working within their gifting.

So how do you take the first step? Obviously the first step in starting a home-based business is prayer. We must each seek God's will, and I believe God freely shares that knowledge - we just have to pay attention.

Then, I would encourage you to consider what you love to do. Make a list of every hobby, sport, or free-time activity you love. Is it scrapbooking, training kids, cooking, baking, party planning, fashion or playing with dogs? Almost anything you love can be a home-based business.

I had a friend who sold make-up, only she didn't wear make up. The lesson here is even if your best friend sells something and is successful, that doesn't mean you will be too.

When started our online business, Rose Lane Cottage, out of my love for cottage-style decorating. I have read Victoria Magazine and Romantic Homes Magazines for years. When we went to pick the products to sell, I poured over Cottage-style design books and loved every minute of it. We now sell mostly office products and I love them too. I'm one of those people who goes to an office products store just for fun. There's something about a blank sheet of paper and a new pen that just stirs my creative juices. (weird, I know)

A home-based business can be a fulfilment of your dreams. Cover it with prayer, wait for God's direction, and then enjoy every moment of it.

In the coming weeks, I'll share more practical tips for working at home.

Have a great day!

With Christ's love,

Glynnis

Working at Home

Today my devotion on being desperate enough to make a positive change ran on Proverbs 31 Encouragement for Today. I'd like to extend a warm welcome to all our devotion readers who have found there way to my little corner of the Internet.

These are very desperate times for many people. I hardly watch the news anymore, because I know I'm going to hear about another company closing its doors, and how many more people are now unemployed. We are not unaffected in our household. Being self-employed is a challenge, especially when some of your consulting clients are in the construction business.

So I thought it might be appropriate to spend some time on how to make money at home. I've been working at home for 10 years, and for the past three years, my husband has worked from home too. Together we have learned a thing or two. Whether you want to work at home full time, or you would like to make some extra money, your home can be a place of financial productivity involving the whole family.

Recently I shared a radio interview with Donna Partow, who wrote a book called "Becoming the Woman God Wants me to Be." This book is a 90-day guide to living the Proverbs 31 life. Donna shares my love of working at home, and said something very bold in the interview. While I can't remember her exact words, basically she said everyone should have a home-based business to increase the revenue streams into the household coffers.

The more I thought about her comment, the more I agreed with her. When we read the Proverbs 31 scripture, we discover a woman who ran several home-based businesses. She used her God-given talents to bring income to her family. If this is God's model for an ideal wife, then maybe we should all be considering how to make money at home.

I shared the interview with Donna because of my own book entitled work@home. If you want to read more about it, please visit Proverbs 31.

In the coming week, I'll share some tips on how to start a home-based business. If God has put this on your heart, I hope some of my experiences will help you.

In His Love,
Glynnis

Happy Belated New Year

Hopefully it's not too late to say Happy New Year! But more than "happy" I wish you a joy-filled New Year. I know from experience that happiness is often hard to come by. It depends on our happenings, which aren't always happy. But joy is something deeper and more lasting. Joy can be there when our happenings are hard. Which is just one more reason to be thankful for Jesus!

I also hope the Christmas season was wonderful for you. I'm happy to announce that I accomplished three of my four hopes for the season:

1) Honor Jesus in my heart. I haven't always done that well in Christmases past, but in 2008, I was determined to focus on the main thing.

2) Send out Christmas cards. Whew! That took a lot of effort.

3) Decorate my house. After only putting lights on our tree last year, this was a priority. I'm proud that I actually allowed my children to hang the decoration with only a few pieces of advice from me (like don't put the expensive ornaments at the bottom where the dog will think they are treats). And then I left the decorations hanging where they were put. I think you moms know what self-control this took.

Here's what I didn't do well: Buying gifts for those I love.

I thought I had purchased more gifts throughout the year than I actually did. Then, when I forced myself to make a list (after recovering from sending out cards and decorating) I realized I was in big trouble. There would be no joy in Whoville if Mama didn't get out shopping.

So on December 23 (no - that was not a typo) I joined the other stressed out, worn out, wrung out shoppers hunting for last-minute deals. The morning was great, with no lines and great finds. But by the afternoon, it was not a pretty site. After leaving the mall, I drove around for 10 minutes in the Costco parking lot looking for a spot and left frustrated. I started early on the 24th and finished up by 11:00. Nothing to be proud of, but there were wrapped presents under the tree on Christmas morning.

The valuable lesson I learned from Christmas 2008 was I can't do everything well. In spite of my best intentions, something will suffer. So I better pick what is most important and do that to my best ability.

Actually, that's a lesson I need to remember throughout the year.

One final note. I did finish up my 8-week weight loss challenge at 159 - which is a 6 pound loss from where I started - and 2 shy of where I wanted to be. I'm not giving up. This was a great jump start for me. I found a friend who will join me at the gym, which was a prayer request of mine a few months ago.

I'm headed to Atlanta on Thursday for a five-day business buying trip with my mom. Even though I'm not a natural shopper, I love looking for great products to sell on our website. In 2009, we'll be focusing more on decorative office pieces and pretty things women can use at work (like charming lunch totes). So I'll be signing out until next week.

Thanks for all your encouraging words in 2008. I treasure each one.

In Christ's love,

Glynnis