The answer to this question is a definite YES! I have lots of business associates in the USA, Europe, Australasia and New Zealand who are working in home based businesses and making good money each week. In fact the lady who introduced me to my new business is only 25 years of age and she made over $500,000 in her first 12 months of her business.

I am now replicating her results, but please read on and you will learn about what I have actually done and experienced in 3 very different situations and how in the end I succeeded in taking control of my future.

My Traditional Business Experience

I used to own and manage a very profitable and high-profile restaurant and bar in Brisbane, Australia for a period of over 12 years. I started it from scratch and like most traditional businesses it was really expensive to set up and the running costs were enormous.

Although I made a lot of money with this venture, I finally decided to offload it when I came to realise that the long hours and constant stress of managing over 30 employees, dealing with various government requirements, endless paper work and hundreds of customers per week was ruining destroying my life.

You can become very wealthy with a standard business but you will need to be extremely committed as you won't be able to walk out and close the door anytime you want.

There will be lots of work to do and deadlines to meet, customers to service and more than likely, staff to hire and manage unless you want to do all the work yourself. The hours are generally very long and in most cases the business can end up taking over your life. Another point to consider is that you'll be on your own to work things out and solve any problems as they arise.

My Job Experience

After selling the business, I decided that a job would be a better alternative to being in business so I set about finding one and little did I know what I was in for!

I spent 8 hours a day scouring the employment classifieds, networking, perfecting my resume and attending interviews for jobs I didn't even want. I felt undervalued and demoralised and almost gave up hope before I finally landed a job with a firm as an Events Manager.

All good you might well think, but unfortunately this was not the case as now I was into something that would cost me 12 hours of my time, 5 days a week as I got dressed up for work, traveled to and from work and actually did the work. I was working under considerable stress and was totally stressed out by having to answer to a boss and co-ordinate every single element of each event from travel and accommodation arrangements, key note speakers, entertainment and right down to sorting out what type of lettuce should go on the dinner plates of the attendees. What a nightmare! But the thing that annoyed me the most was that I was doing all of this to make my boss richer while I had to settle for a small pay packet at the end of each week. JOB = Just over broke.

My Home Business Experience

As you might have guessed, I didn't stay in my job as an Event Manager for long. I had spent 7 months of my life trying to find the right job and after only 1 month I resigned.

I had no idea what to try next but I was determined to find something that would tick ALL the boxes for me and knew that I first needed to get very clear about what I really wanted.

I did not want to:

Own and manage a stressful, traditional type of business

Outlay a lot of money to get started in a new business

Answer to a boss and have to beg for time off work

I did want to

Earn a lot of money

Work from home

Take control of my future

With the above in mind, I spent the next couple of months researching my options until I was eventually attracted to an advertisement (placed by a 25 year old lady) about a home based business opportunity. I must admit that I was pretty hesitant to begin with but I decided I had nothing to lose by finding out more so I answered the ad and within 1 week I was up and running with my very own home based business.

On my best day so far, I earned five thousand dollars but what I really love about my home business most is that I actually took back control of my own life. I now work the hours I choose, from the comfort of home or anywhere I like really with my laptop and phone. I don't have to juggle and manage staff anymore and gone is all the stress. I fit my work around my life, generally about 25 hours per week and I absolutely love what I do.

It's not for everyone however and if you are considering getting started in a home business you should ask yourself the following important questions:

1. Is the business aligned with your income and lifestyle goals?

2. Do you have some money and time to invest into the business?

3. Can you work diligently as your own boss and without supervision?

4. Will there be anyone to help or guide you if you get stuck along the way?

Yes! You can make money with home based businesses. Lots of money!

Christine Hamilton is currently making money in with home based businesses. For more information about what she is actually doing, click work at home BSCH110509 Supported by sales training Australia.

The sport of bicycle touring has certainly grown in recent years.  When I was young, I first recall seeing men on touring bicycles climbing the highways through the mountain areas of Vermont and New Hampshire.  I was intrigued watching these riders climbing the long inclines without letting up.  Loving the outdoors and especially the mountains, I knew this was the only way to really enjoy the magnificent views.  It was then that I realized the type of bicycle they were riding was much different then the mountain bike I grew up with~owned.

A few months ago I met a middle aged man who lived in the north east.  Each summer he would fly with his touring bicycle to Washington state.  Then he'd spend several weeks riding across the country coming home.   Needless to say, his bicycle was outfitted with loads of specialized touring bags and accessories.  As the sport's popularity has risen, so has the demand for touring bicycles.  In the past, the only place to find a good tour bicycle was at local bike shop which would usually be limited to one make of bicycle.  Of course that all came with a high price tag.  Lets face it, the price of Schwinn~touring bikes simply put them out of reach for younger people just entering the sport.

I recall traveling a couple hours to find the specific Schwinn road bike I was searching for.  Fortunately today, that is not the case.  You can find all the biggest names in road bicycles on the internet.  The additional benefit is many can be found at affordable prices also.  The interest in bicycle touring has also given rise to the availability of specialized bicycle parts, accessories and bicycle clothing.  You would be hard pressed to find adult bicycle accessories and clothing at your local discount store.  But this is not the case online.

The obvious addition that bicycle touring requires is a way to carry your personal gear, clothing and camping equipment on long trips.  The popularity of touring has provided riders a huge variety of upgrade bicycle parts and accessories.  It is quite easy to find all types of bicycle parts and even special bicycling clothing for your long trips.  Serious bikers can easily upgrade just about their entire bicycle by traveling no further then their PC.