Inside of timeDeciding you want to build a home business is only the first step in realizing your dreams.

Figuring out the timeline of when you need to begin to earn money and how much you need to earn are two of the key questions you need to answer before you begin developing your online opportunity.

In this post I’ll talk about some options that are available whether you need money now vs. if you have a few months’ lead time to lay a stronger foundation.

If You Need Money Now

Life happens, and sometimes you just need quick cash.

If that’s your case, then building a long term home business might not be the best option for you at the moment.

That’s because when you’re desperate for cash now, it’s very difficult to think about what’s right action for your business a few months from now, or a few years from now.

Basically, the only businesses that will begin to earn real cash quickly revolve around consulting and freelance work, where you end up trading your individual time for money.

While this can be a quick fix, or even a sustainable “lifestyle” business for those who truly love their work, your income source isn’t easily scalable, which is a huge drawback in my mind.

In order to earn more money, you have to work more.

That, to me, seems unnecessary.

A Better Long Term Option

The better option, if you have a few months’ flexibility where you don’t absolutely need any extra income, is to lay the foundation for a real business, one that has the ability to provide a passive revenue stream and scale over time to meet any income goal.

Real businesses take time to build.

That’s because the most scalable businesses are ones that have some sort of asset they can continue to use far into the future.

Most often that asset is a product, whether a physical product (like an appliance or piece furniture), an informatonal product (like a course or training), or a digital product (like a piece of software).

In the case of home internet businesses, that product is usually a website of some sort, regardless of what you’re using the website to sell.

For any new website, it will take time to generate traffic, which will eventually turn into sales.

But, if you take those first few months of your business to lay the proper foundation, that work will continue to reward you for a long time, and any future work you do will translate into compound earnings for your business.

That, in my opinion, has the ability to turn into a very exciting business opportunity, regardless of what industry you’re working in.

If you want to read more on how to build a passive income business, read this post.