By Amy Collett

Are you thinking about starting a business out of your home? If so, you probably know about the many advantages of using your home as a business headquarters, such as lower overhead costs, no commute, and flexibility in schedule.

But to reap the benefits, you must prepare and strategize your home-based business the right way. Otherwise, you will find it hard to succeed in the short term, much less the long term. Below are some practical, budget-friendly tips to help you start a home-based business on solid ground.

Consider Business Financing

First of all, it’s hard to start a business when you don’t have a lot of cash flow. To help reduce stress and give yourself solid footing as you launch your business, look into your options with small business funding. That way, you can get assistance to get any new equipment, inventory, additional staff, and other things that will help you get a good start.

Research government funding options, such as traditional SBA...

In a 2001 study, Researcher Judith Richman linked workplace harassment to drinking behaviors. In a multi-wave panel study at an urban university, targets who had more than two years of bullying had a stronger connection to drinking problems.

“These drinking behaviors reflect an attempt by targets to deal with the psychological stress,” say Loraleigh Keashly and Joel H. Neuman in their Employee Rights and Employee Policy Journal article. “Should such drinking continue, job performance and productivity is likely to suffer. For example, some research suggests that sixty billion dollars is lost in annual productivity as a result of alcohol abuse.”

The link isn’t shocking. What’s shocking is the failure of management to address root cause: workplace bullying. It’s far easier to blame a target for a drinking problem than a higher level employee for causing the unnecessary stress in the first place. That negligence to address the...