by Marnie Pehrson

• Do what you love and success will follow.
• Have a strong dose of enthusiasm for life.
  Enthusiasm and passion for what you do and for life
  can cover a multitude of errors. If you have enthusiasm
  for what you do, you will stick with your business.
  You will be motivated to giving it the time and
  attention and patience that it needs to grow from
  seed to a flourishing tree.
• Capitalize on your strengths.
  Recognize your weaknesses and be willing to compensate
  for them either by studying new skills or hiring
  others to help you in your weaker areas.
• Specialize. Differentiate yourself
  from the crowd. Offer more service and tailor your
  services to your customers' needs.
• Remember the law of multiplication.
  Multiply your products and your distribution channels.
  If you offer service evaluations for companies,
  you might also provide other related services. You
  could offer training for their employees on customer
  service, videos on dealing with customer complaints,
  seminars on closing the sale, and books on these
  subjects. Multiply your efforts from one "you" to
  many products and many customers.
• Commitment.
• Consistency in work, in advertising,
  in your quality.
• Develop a mission for your life
  and for your business and compare all decisions
  against those missions.
• Develop plans of action. How
  will you get from point A to point B? Set goals
  and strategies from getting where you are to where
  you want to be.
• Use a system for tracking your
  schedule and daily tasks. Double up on tasks to
  save time.
• Use every scrap of time. Waste
  not a minute. Learn to use the odd moment.
• Plan ahead and pool projects.
• Never hide behind busy work.
  It takes just as much effort to fail as it does
  to succeed.
• When purchasing a computer, evaluate
  your software needs first, then choose a system
  that can fulfill those needs. Buy as far to the
  forefront of technology as you can.
• Look for the redundancies in
  your work and either eliminate or automate them.
• Take advantages of on-line services
  to boost your business and research your markets.
• Check into RingMaster and MemoryCall services
  to give your business a professional tone.
• Remember that the order of your priorities
  in life is just as important as the priorities themselves.
• Set aside a family night one
  night a week, and schedule "dates" with your spouse.
• Set rules and expectations in
  your family to provide order and security.
• Set family goals and evaluate
  your progress periodically.
• Survive phone calls by teaching
  your children to draw what they need, investing
  in a portable phone, and rewarding and praising
  them when they are quiet. (A sound proof room would
  not hurt either).
• Teach your children the business,
  and get them involved early in helping. Remember
  to treat them like you would an employee when they
  help. Would you yell and fuss at an employee if
  they made a mistake? Probably not. They would be
  out the door in a heartbeat.
• Go the extra mile. Exceed your
  client's expectations.
• Add a personal touch to all your customer
  relations. Learn their names, remember
  their birthdays, and above all else, treat them
  as equals.
• Learn from complaints. Use them
  to make your product that much better.
• Use E-mail, newsletters, and phone calls to keep
  in touch with clients.
• Arm yourself with a list of rewards for
  a job well done. Remember, the only pat
  on the back you may ever get will be the one you
  give yourself.
• Take one day in seven to rest.
• Push the "record button" in life.
  Make lasting memories that can carry you through
  a lifetime.
• Learn basic bookkeeping and tax laws.
  Take a class at your local community college on
  business accounting and business taxes.
• Learn to say "No."
• Delegate wisely and completely. Learn
  to trust and listen to the ideas of those you supervise.
• Remember that word of mouth and promotion
  may be the cheapest form of getting business, but
  they are the most effective.

Excerpted from ''Keeping Your Sanity in a Home Business'' by Marnie L. Pehrson. Learn more about this online course at http://www.pwgroup.com/ces/ceskeep.html.

Marnie Pehrson may be contacted at http://www.pwgroup.com marnie@pwgroup.com.
Marnie Pehrson is an author, creator of www.IdeaMarketers.com, www.LocateACoach.com, www.SheLovesGod.com, and more. She is the author of inspirational books like Lord, Are You Sure? and historical fiction such as The Patriot Wore Petticoats. She also helps people earn money from home using the phone and the Internet. For more information on her projects, visit http://www.pwgroup.com.