If you are a small business owner, you probably spend a lot of time worrying. It’s perfectly understandable, too. If you’re the Big Boss, you find yourself in the position of trying to be all things to all people, and that’s a lot to be concerned about. Everyone wants an answer from you—employees, vendors, clients, contractors, customers, and your family.

High employee turnover and the difficulty of finding reliable workers is one of the major problems reported by small business owners. Even when you use pre-hiring drug tests and background checks, there always seem to be problem employees, malcontents who like to make “the company” out to be greedy and unfair, and of course you’re the main villain in the scenario.

Meanwhile, although you may be painted as the bad guy or gal, you’re actually worrying about how much of a raise you can afford to give employees while you continue to obey all the workplace regulations of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and other government bureaucracies, make sure you aren’t discriminating against anyone who might sue you, and try to work out the biggest bugaboo of all—health insurance.

Then there are worker’s compensation, unemployment compensation, and liability insurance—to say nothing of payroll tax reports, W-2s, 1099s, performance reports, and all the other forms associated with employing and paying people. Even though you delegate a lot of these responsibilities to others, you’re the one who makes the final call and takes the big fall if someone doesn’t do their job.

Of course, you need to leave some time to think about the economic aspects of your business. Are you targeting the right market with the correct strategies? Are you keeping up with changing market conditions? Are your prices in line? Too high? Too low? How can you compete with the big-box stores? You’ve got to read reports that track your sales, measure your profit margins, detail your inventory, explain your net profit, and list your expenses. What about those cash flow problems? Are you going to be able to make the payroll and pay yourself this week? Has that loan been approved?

If you’ve got a business with trucks on the road or other equipment, you’ve got maintenance, safety, and insurance headaches to deal with. Office equipment is another source of frustration. Sure, it’s great that everything is done by computer these days—but what a mess it is when the person inputting the data messes up or forgets to backup important files. And speaking of computers, has your web site been updated lately? How about your virus protection?

The list of troubles to be faced daily goes on and on. Vendors want to be paid. Dissatisfied customers want refunds. Contractors don’t meet deadlines. The computer crashes.

As we said, small business owners have a lot of worries. Spreading themselves too thin inevitably leads to stress, and in return stress can lead to depression, anxiety, heart problems, and difficulties in personal relationships. Spouses and children may complain, “You’re married to the business,” or “You’re never home, and when you are you’re so distracted they can’t get through to you anyway because your mind is still at the office.” Vacations? Forget it. The small business owner is always “on call” even if a short vacation can be managed.

The truth is, a lot of small business owners wished they had never gone into business at all. But what would they do if they sold out? After all, they’re business people. They love the idea of being part of the business world, associating with other business owners, and simply being part of the amazing free enterprise system. But being your own boss is supposed to be a dream-come-true, not a daily round of hassles.

Is it Time to Re-evaluate?
If you’re a frustrated small business owner and you feel trapped by many of these problems, you may be looking for a new enterprise that will not be so taxing—a way to create a stable income that still leaves you time for the very people you’ve been working so hard for: yourself and your family. You’ve already proven that you can succeed—and if only it weren’t for all those annoyances bogging you down, you can only imagine how much more successful you’d be.

There is an alternative to a bricks-and-mortar business that robs your energy and enthusiasm. According to a September, 2006, report by the U.S. Census Bureau, about 49% of small businesses today are home-based, and the number is expected to continue rising. Why is a home-based business so appealing to so many? To begin with, most of the aggravations associated with storefront businesses just aren’t there. Feelings of freedom and peace reign in a comfortable home office environment. There is time to spend with family.

As a home-based entrepreneur, you will still be part of a viable business community of like-minded individuals who will be happy to network with you and who won’t expect you to be their caretaker. This frees you up to devote your time to accumulating wealth for yourself and your family, the people who matter most to you.