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Owning and operating a home-based business takes a special kind of person. Home-based businesses are—at best—challenging. Even if selling your handmade jewelry at home is an ideal situation for you, for it to be successful requires hard work, dedication, and the ability to keep your business and home lives separate. You may ask yourself if you’re really up to this challenge. If your answer is “yes,” and you have the determination to make your business work for you, you’re already off to a good start! Firstly, you must set a work schedule and have the discipline to stick to it. Business hours are business hours, and the laundry will still be there when business hours are over. But there is nothing wrong with scheduling housework and errands into your business schedule. Allow time first thing in the morning to clean, and combine your grocery shopping with other errands. If you can afford to hire a neighbor or a college student to come in for a couple of hours each day or a couple of times a week to run errands and do light cleaning and laundry, great! This will free up a lot of time for your work. The number of hours you spend making new jewelry, ordering supplies and doing paperwork need not be 9 – 5, but during the shop posted hours, be sure you are there for your customers. At then end of your business day, leave your work in your shop or studio! Let the answering machine take after-hours calls; faxes will still be there in the morning, and so will your e-mail! By honoring your business hours, your customers, suppliers and other business contacts will learn to honor them too. As time passes and your business grows, you’ll learn to appreciate having those “untouchable” hours away from your workplace! After making the decision to running a home-based jewelry business it should be confined to your workspace and not allowed to intrude upon your living space. Your business and your home both need privacy. Whether you work in your basement, garage, or a spare room in your house, it should have a separate entrance for customers and deliveries. It provides a more professional environment in which you can nicely display your jewelry, and gives your family the privacy they need. Keeping your business in, but separate from, your home sets boundaries for both customers and family members, and one is less likely to intrude upon the other. Your business should have its own mailing address, phone line and bank account, making it easier to have your personal and business records already separated come tax time. You may not be aware of the Federal, State and local—including zoning—regulations that apply to operating a business from your home. You can find this information at your City Hall or County or Parrish Courthouse. Your CPA will also know these regulations. There may be special safety and building code requirements you must meet before a business license is granted. Taking care to fulfill all legal regulations and restrictions will save you a lot of headaches and fines for noncompliance with the laws governing home businesses. Networking with other crafters is a great way to learn helpful business tips, new jewelry designs and socialize with great many people who share your passion for creating beautiful pieces of art! Join your state crafters guild or local co-op or club. Your local Chamber of Commerce is always ready to supply networking contacts with other business owners in your community. When you attend crafts fairs, seminars, make it a point to get out of your booth to meet the other artists selling their products. One of the easiest ways to meet and network with fellow crafters is by joining an online crafters community or forum. It’s a fun way to share stories and learn how to deal with problems or frustrations you may experience with running your business!
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