Many of us leave the nine-to-five grind in hopes of finding more freedom and greater financial rewards by operating our own home businesses. One of the most attractive elements of making that transition is the prospect of not having a boss.

After years in the workforce taking orders from others, the idea of being the primary decision maker and final authority is incomparably attractive.

Unfortunately, it is far too easy to lose track of the fact that you will still have a boss. You will be your own boss and as strange as it may sound, you will have to learn to be tough on yourself!

There won't be another supervisor, upper management or other team members to pressure you to perform. Instead, you will need to rely on your own self-motivation and discipline. That's right, discipline.

We'd prefer to think of running a home business as an exercise in constant flexibility. We envision days spent watching the money roll in while we wear our bathrobes and enjoy a morning coffee. We think back to days chained to our desk in "regular jobs" and relish the chance of being able to escape for a day trip or round of golf at will.

All of those things are possible, especially after you have developed a series of proven revenue streams and have created residual earning power. In the beginning, however, owning your own home business requires a great deal of focus and work. You will probably find that you need to be far tougher on yourself than any boss you had back in the regular workforce.

You'll need to tell yourself to buckle down and work when a nap seems more inviting. You will have to instruct yourself to concentrate and work harder when you might prefer to spend the day enjoying yourself. Use those dreams of lazy days and fun activities to motivate you, but don't start having them until you are truly ready. Establish your home business through dedicated effort and the days of fun and frolic will follow, all on their own.

Getting tough with yourself and pushing yourself to success is essential. By taking your business seriously and staying focused on your goals, you can position yourself to enjoy relaxing days and long vacations later. In order to get to those goals, however, you will need to apply a great deal of pressure to yourself.

As you grow your work at home business, resist the temptation to "take it easy" on yourself. You may be the boss and the employee, but you cannot afford to neglect either of those roles. Expect great things and tremendous effort from yourself, and then deliver both. If you do, you will find that working at home can be both lucrative and personally rewarding.

Copyright 2006 www.eliasg.com