I'm what you would call a “lifestyle entrepreneur". When I created my HRN business 10 years ago, I was a new mom and my spare time was limited. I wasn't willing to work outside of my home or sacrifice time with my new family but I did need to earn an income. With that in mind, I created a business that fit my abilities and my lifestyle and—10 years later-- it's amazing to see how so many other entrepreneurs have been able to successfully fit this business into their lives as well.

Whether you're working at a full time job in Corporate America or are at home raising a family, below are some helpful tips on how you can adapt a home based business into your lifestyle:

1. Define Your Hours: Take a look at your schedule and pinpoint the hours of the day that you're able to devote to your business. If you're a “morning person", plan to wake up one hour earlier to work. If you prefer to work in the evenings, go to your home office after dinner or after your kids have gone to bed. Need to schedule work hours around a full time or part time job? Call forward your business line to a cell phone and return calls during your commute to and from work or during your lunch hour.

2. Go Online: The Internet is a phenomenal tool for a home-based business operator. It allows you to promote your business 24 hours a day, communicate with clients and automate many aspects of your day-to-day operation.

For example, most HRN owners have utilized the Internet by launching an HRN website that allows homeowners to submit job referral requests, acknowledge their corporate liability statement and confirm their request via an autoresponder message. Once this information is submitted, it is automatically downloaded into their web-based HRNMS (Homeowner Referral Network Management Software) account so that they can access it at any time of day from any location.

3. Work Efficiently: No matter how many hours you have to devote to your business, use your time well. If you're only able to work 1 or 2 hours per day, focus your energy on the money-making aspects of your business. In the case of an HRN owner, these tasks will include:

• Following up with homeowners on job referrals
  
  
• Following up with contractors on appointments, estimates and commissions
  
  
• Business promotion and networking

And, outsource other business responsibilities that require a particular area of expertise such as web design, copy writing, accounting, etc.

Another option for those who feel that their time is limited is to consider hiring a virtual assistant , stay-at-home mom or student to help launch your business or consider starting your business with a partner.

Bottom line: If you chose a business that you enjoy, adapting it into your lifestyle won't feel like a chore and the rewards will be tremendous. And, as the expression goes—“If you want to get something done, give it to a busy person!"

Regards,