Who hasn’t been lured into a Home-Based Business, Network Marketing Business, Multi-Level Business or even a Direct Sales Business by the idea of working part-time hours to create full-time revenue? The problem with this line of thinking for the vast majority of people is, they are not business people they are employees. There is a tremendous mind-set change that has to take place when you stop being the worker and start being the owner. What most workers don’t realize is that the owner of the business didn’t get paid for quite awhile after they started that business and may not even be getting paid right now even though they have employees. There needs to be a willingness on the part of every new business owner to do some work, maybe even a lot of work for a significant period of time before they get paid.

The amount of time you are willing to contribute to your new venture is directly proportional to when you can expect to start getting paid. If you are jumping in to your new business full-time, your return is going to come much sooner than if you are working part-time. Most people start a Home-Based, or Network Marketing business because they don’t want to take the risk of jumping into something full time, but they know the value of owning your own business, so they agree to start out part-time.

The part-timers are torn on two fronts. First, the financial reward is much, much slower and even more sporadic. The wise entrepreneur sets up a separate bank account and commits to reinvesting all of the income into the business for marketing tools, supplies, training etc. However, more often than not this money is mingled with their general expense money and even though the earnings may be substantial, it never seems to launch the part-timer over the hump to become a full-timer. Second, the part-timer is constantly staring into the future and watching the lifestyles of the full-timers. This pull coupled with the drive from the full-time “up line” creates a conundrum of motivation to succeed and frustration that part-time efforts are not creating full-time results.

If success doesn’t come relatively quickly, i.e. the part-timer is able to jump to being a full-timer, one of two things happens. Either the part-timer will jump to full-time status prematurely, with a “sink-or-swim” attitude, or they become discouraged and drop off of their regular routine. The spare-timer is that unique person that still believes in the product, the company, and the opportunity but they just can’t seem to justify making the commitment to time and activity to expand their business. They may be in a place where revenue needs dictate that they stay primarily committed to their J-O-B and as opportunity presents itself they will make a sale or recruit a new business associate. All it would really take for the spare-timer to once again become a part-timer, or maybe even make the jump to being a full-timer is one or two quality recruits.

If a spare-timer lingers too long, however, they may become a some-timer. These are the folks that for whatever reason have kept their status active with the company, but they are not actively engaged in the daily activity necessary to be productive in growing their business. The pitfalls of becoming a some-timer are first of all developing a romance with “sometime I’m going to be able to do this, or sometime I’m going to hit it big, or sometime I’ll get back into that thing”. The romance aspect of business keeps us from ever making the commitment to become successful, or from making the commitment to just quit. Most all networking marketing businesses, in fact most all businesses have some degree of success built in to them. The one finality to any business is quitting. As is stated in an ancient Hebrew proverb, “Better a live dog than a dead lion, for while there is life there is yet hope”.

Maybe today is the day you’ll pull out that old list of names you made when you were new, plan to attend your company’s next opportunity meeting, and take some action to affect your destiny. Your next big sale or next great recruit may be a phone call away. One of my mentors likes to say, “Don’t let the reason you didn’t make the sale be you didn’t make the call.

Who knows, with a little effort you could become a “Just-In-Timer”.

Gary Russell
503-519-3592
www.DefendMyLife.com

There are tremendous, almost outrages differences in the Federal Tax Code for those who have a home based business.  The tax code favors business owners over being an employee.  We go to school to become educated and trained so that we can have a “Job”.  We all understand that is how it’s done so that we can earn a living and go through life raising our families and being good citizens.

 For most people, consideration for owning your own business is out of the question for many reasons.  We have been told that most business ventures fail within the first three years.  Who would want to have a failure?  Many who might consider having there own business can never scrape together the cash to get it started.  Still others just think there is too much hassle.  It is easier to work for someone else, trading time for dollars.

 From the tax standpoint alone, the problem with being employed by someone is that you pay taxes on your gross income.  So if you’re employed and your tax rate is 15 percent, then you will pay $15 dollars (less maybe some credits) on $100 earned.  You end up with $85 take home.

 There is a solution for those who are employed by someone else.  A home based business is one solution that could provide deductions.  Many people have a home based business that is part time work.  You do need to figure out if the benefits to you are worth what you will need to give up.  You may need to give up 10 to 15 hours a week of television or some other activity that you are currently doing.  There is a definition in that tax code that prohibits hobbies from using tax deductions.  Be sure to understand the definition and rules.

 Should you decide to start a home base business you will need to keep records of your activities and have a separate business checking account and credit card.  Keeping good records is the key to making sure that all deductions are accounted for and at tax time appear on “Schedule C”. 

 Remember that deductions are subtracted from income before the tax you owe is determined.  There are too many deductions available to go over here but the information is available.  One source is published by NOLO.  “Home Business Tax Deductions” by Attorney Stephen Fishman.

 To give you an idea and peak your interest here are a couple deductions that you would be able to receive.  When working for someone else you have occasion to go to the bank.  You can not deduct the mileage you drive.  With your home based business you needed to do some banking and just happened to need to do some personal bank and perhaps between the bank and home you needed some groceries.  You can deduct mileage at the current rate for the entire trip.  Why?  Because you need to go to your bank to make a business related deposit, the mileage going to and from counts and whatever else you do along the way, that’s called “saving gas”!  

 Another situation may be you go out to dinner with someone.  During the course of the meal you have a discussion about your business.  You would eat one way or another and without the business discussion you could not record the cost of the meal.  Your record keeping should describe the occasion for the business discussion and with whom in order to be able to deduction half of your meal bill as a business cost.

 If you decide to start a home based business, you must take some time to become knowledgeable about all legal tax deduction possibilities.  Your accountant can help you but you are the one who must keep adequate records and toughly understand what you can do and not do relative to taxes for the business.   Beyond the tax deduction advantage you have the opportunity to make additional money which can move you toward your dreams and develop long personal and professional relationships.  You can help others and gain a great education through the business process.   

Health Watch Central

www.healthwatchcentral.com