Home Based Business Opportunity: There’s No Such Thing as a ‘free Lunch’!

Look, I know it’s tough out there making ends meet and finding time for the family and for all the things you want to do. It’s a struggle for most people. And to escape their unpleasant situation, many people are looking on the Internet for the Holy Grail of home based businesses that will magically set them free.

The good news is there are plenty of legitimate home based business opportunities out there that will allow an average person to make an extraordinary residual income and live a wonderFUNtastic lifestyle—what I like to call a Richer Life. I know that for a fact because I have such a business. The bad news is there is NO Holy Grail, and none of the good, legitimate income opportunities are “free.”

“There’s no such thing as a free lunch!” That proverb has been traced back to around 1950. It means that nothing in life is free—you can’t get something for nothing. And if it appears to be free, somebody somewhere is paying for it.

That is extremely valuable information to keep in mind when you’re surfing the Internet looking for a home based business or income opportunity. Beware the “nothing (down) for something” SCAMS! They go against ALL the generally accepted rules of business and commerce.

Business and commerce started eons ago. At first, it took the form of bartering—exchanging goods for goods. I’ll trade my fish for three pieces of your firewood. Then “money” was invented in the form of seashells, beads, or pieces of metal. Julius pays you three beads for your fish, and you go across the village and pay Brutus two beads for some firewood, which leaves you one bead to buy bread from Calius the baker on the way back home.

It’s still how we do business today—except we now use coins and bills, credit cards, debit cards, money orders, bank drafts, bank wires, checks, email transfers, or PayPal. But it’s ALWAYS an exchange of something for something, be it goods or services. If not, the police are called in to investigate—or at least they should be, because someone’s been robbed!

I’m a business person. I have products for sale, and I have a business opportunity. To get either one, you’ll have to pay money. It’s a value-for-value proposition: your money for my product and / or my opportunity. Fair and square. And on top of that, if you want to succeed with my business opportunity, you’ll have to do some work—like I do. Again, value (your sweat and elbow grease) for value (a substantial residual income).

“The concept of value-for-value is the foundation for all sound, harmonious human relationships. Value-for-value is another way of saying ‘win-win’. The surest way to succeed in any endeavor is to make certain that ALL parties to a transaction come out ahead.”—Robert J. Ringer, philosopher, businessman and bestselling author

No free lunch. Everything has a price. As it should be. Warren Buffet once said, “"Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.” Or as I like to say, “You always get what you pay for; you pay nothing, you’ll get nothing in return.”

You’re probably wondering why on earth I’m spending so much time expanding on something so obvious. Because for some unexplainable reason, many otherwise intelligent people (who would never consider walking out the door of the liquor store with a case of wine they did not pay for—unless they’re looking for a way to spend a night in jail) act like idiots when they’re on the Net searching for a home based business opportunity.

As if all of a sudden, because they’re navigating the virtual world, all the laws of commerce—particularly the practice of value-for-value—no longer apply. And they’ll get sucked into the most ludicrous scams. Like “free business opportunity”, or “no money down turnkey home based business” or “you do no work, we do it all for you.” On that last one, if that is true, if they indeed do ALL the work, why would they not keep ALL the profits?

Put your thinking cap back on! Let’s be real. A business costs money—even in the “virtual” world. It costs money to start and to grow. And it takes some work too. People should stop fooling themselves and waste their time responding to those idiotic ads that pollute the Internet. If they believe garbage like “Turn $35 into $10,000 a month, for life!”, the next thing the scammers will try to sell them is some ocean-front property in the middle of the Sahara desert.

You know what song is playing in the scammer’s head while he’s processing some sucker’s credit card? These words are from a very popular song of the mid-eighties by Robert Palmer: “The lights are on, but you’re not home, your mind is not your own…” They’ll probably sing that too as they’re walking and laughing all the way to the bank!

Enough negative stuff already. Let’s take a look now at some valuable words of wisdom from three very successful businesspeople…

“Creating legitimate value is the straightest line between where you are now and where you want to be. It is a major component of getting what you want in life. It doesn't matter how fast or how hard you work if your efforts don't create value for others. And creating value stems from passion; passion stems from belief in what you're doing; belief in what you're doing stems from working at something you not only are good at, but enjoy. When you get all these factors going in the right direction, you have no trouble being motivated to do whatever it takes to succeed. There is nothing quite so exhilarating as working yourself to the point of exhaustion for months, or even years, then being handsomely rewarded for your efforts in the marketplace. Every human being should treat himself to this drug-free high at least once in his lifetime.” Robert J. Ringer

Zig Ziglar is famous for saying, “You gotta put something in FIRST if you want to get something out.” He usually makes that statement on stage while operating an old-fashion water pump.

“Money is a measure of the value that people place on goods and services. The amount of money you earn in a competitive market is the measure of value that others place on your contribution. So, to increase the amount of money you are getting out, you must increase the value of the work that you are putting in.” Brian Tracy, in The Laws of Money

As a successful businessperson myself, I have the following suggestions for you if you are currently considering starting a home based business to improve your present work situation and get out of your financial predicament:

1. Right now, this second, adopt a new way of thinking about “free-and-easy” home based business opportunities. If you want to get out of the rat race and live the lifestyle you truly desire for yourself and your loved ones, you will have to invest money, and you will have to put in so many hours a week of elbow grease. Period!

2. Make a list of ALL the things in your life you’d like to get rid of if you were making $10,000 to $15,000 a month working from home.

3. Make a list of ALL the new things you’d like to do and have in your life when you start making that kind of money. The reason for those lists is to really motivate you to do the next two steps.

4. Do your research, starting with going to the website in the resource box below and reading all the articles you will find there about how to choose a good home based business opportunity.

5. When you’ve found some income opportunities that appeal to you—none of which should have the words “free” or “we do all the work for you” in them—do your due diligence, including calling the sponsor and other people who are doing that business before signing on the dotted line.

In conclusion, think of the Internet as the Wild West of the nineteenth century. There are some really good opportunities out there, BUT there are also a lot of snake oil merchants who are looking for gullible people to steal money from. Like the proverb says: “A fool and his money are soon parted.” Don’t be a fool. Keep your eyes open, keep your thinking cap on, do your due diligence and you will find a legitimate home based business that over time will allow you to earn a solid residual income from the comfort of your home, and finally live the lifestyle that you and your loved ones desire and deserve. Promise.

Daniel “BizzBooster” St-Jean

P.S. If you know some friends “in need” who could benefit from reading this article, why not email it to them now? They’ll appreciate it. Wouldn’t you?