Working in Your Skivvies Might Be For You

This month's Entrepreneur has an interesting article about starting a home-based franchise business. While most of the franchises in their top 101 list seem to be cleaning businesses and overall, the list did little entice me into jump-starting my own franchise-specific savings account, it does beg the question if working in your skivvies is ultimately what we're all after.

So what skills should a successful home-based franchisee or independent contractor/freelancer possess? Assuming we're all into working in our skivvies afte rall...

Let's start with basics:

• Know Your Legalese: As an independent contractor/freelancer, you set up shop under your own name, so to speak. You're working under your own business guidelines, free of any legal ties to a franchisor. For either scenario, legal counsel will be helpful in assessing your business' liquidity and giving you sound peace/piece of mind.
• Keep Figures Straight (or Know What Software to Utilize): For savvy bookkeeping business owners with a penchant for Accounting, keep track of the #s might not seem daunting, but to the less skilled, it can be. Keep this in mind as you get your freelance business or franchise off the ground. You'll want to seriously consider investing in efficient bookkeeping software.
• Consummate the Relationship Early On: As stressful and time-consuming as a day gig can feel (Did i mention soulless and thankless too?), remember that whether it's your side business or you're committing to a franchise or solo contracting biz full-on, it will take the guts and guts inside the guts out of you. What distinguishes this from all other relationships you've had in the past is your commitment to its success so be in it for the long haul .
• Don't Start Every Bullet Point with a "K": It's ok to spice it up once in a while as I just reminded myself in the last bullet. The most interesting gigs I ever embarked on that eventually led to more serious professional relationships were started on a "trial" basis. It allows you to test the climate and the waters to know if you're ready to jump in head first, especially relevant when going the freelancing route.

For more useful "starting your own franchise" information, go to AllBusiness.com.