Don't be fooled. Just because you have a desk and a stapler, that doesn't make you an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs do not define themselves as they are today. They define themselves by who they will be tomorrow. They are visionaries. They are always moving toward the future.

Now it's time to be that visionary for yourself - to start building that business you imagined back when you were still toiling away under that thankless boss - always knowing you could do so much more.

Before you can begin to cure your ailing business and become a thriving entrepreneur, you must know who you really are and what you really want. Your business has to match you. The first thing you have to decide is whether you want to stay small or build an empire. No need to write a whole business plan that only you and your mother will read. Just picture yourself having the perfect business-what does it look like? How are you living your life?

I have found two particular and extremely different styles of successful entrepreneur, the 'Growth Maven' and the 'Lifestyle Guru.'

'Growth Mavens' know how to dream big, and have the ambition to match. A typical Growth Maven runs her business from home to cut down on overhead, but she dreams of the day when she'll be sitting in a suite on the top floor of her own office building. She believes in a future where she's the next mega-star like Michael Dell, Steve Jobs, or Martha Stewart - people who started their companies as a home-based business and turned them into multi-billion dollar empires. She knows that there is no limit to how much money she can make, and she has the drive to constantly innovate her business. But first she needs to move the business out of her house.

The 'Lifestyle Guru' saw his dream come true the day he didn't head back to his little cubicle. His goal was simply to leave his miserable job behind and finally become his own boss. He hates commuting back and forth, the endless and useless meetings and working for little-minded people who can see only as far as their next progress report. He wants to feel like his work is more than just pushing paper until 6 o'clock. He wants to feel pride and accomplishment in doing something he truly enjoys. And he wants to do it his own way.

The Lifestyle Guru wants to work in her bathrobe and take a break in the middle of the day to play outside with her kids. She's ok with cleaning out her inbox late at night when the rest of the family is asleep. Sometimes she'll work on a weekend, but sometimes she won't. Her work fits in with the rest of her life, not the other way around. She knows there's a limit to how much money she can make, but she's bringing in a comfortable income and has more leisure time to spend with her loved ones. When it works, her life is pretty darn good.

You probably already have some idea whether you are a Growth Maven or a Lifestyle Guru, but if you are sitting on the fence and not sure in which direction you'd like to go, then I have a quiz available online and in my book that should help you figure that out.

About the Author

Home Office Success Guru Jeff Landers Offers up Tough Learned Lessons about Major Business Killers In Your Home Office

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