Can't see the home business wood for the scamming trees

I have several 'google alerts' set up (if you don't know what these are...uh...google it) that keep me abreast of every aspect of what could be called 'the flexible world'. As part of that daily research I have an alert that brings me all the 'home business' news from around the world, from newspaper articles to blogs, and quite frankly I'm getting real tired of the crap that is tarnishing this growing corner of commerce.

You must experience the same. Every website and 'mom' blog is full of MLM, turnkey, don't have to work, retire on a beach, send the kids to Harvard business models that just 'can't lose'. They set you up with a ready to go website, that looks like the website they gave a 1000 other people, and tell you to put your paypal address in and wait for the currency flood. Listen to me! The only person making money is the guy/gal selling you this bullshit notion that an online business is easy money. I'm actually quite insulted.

I've been in both worlds, internet and real, as an entrepreneur and every business I've had runs on the same principles - make the best product you can, market it, sell it and try to get them to come back again with excellent customer service. You can't just set that on auto-pilot, in any medium.

If you want an online business the opportunities are endless and the market huge but don't expect it to be easy, and stay a million miles away from anyone that tells you it is. You have to work just as hard to keep the basic principles going every day as you would in a bricks and mortar enterprise. It's still a business, you have to treat it as such.

Check out our blog about flexible working for parents