This is the second in a series of articles and videos that I have put together to give you a comprehensive overview of the 10 best home based business success tools. These are the most important things you will need to succeed in any home based business. Here is the list at a glance:No. 1 – A Great Marketing System
No. 2 – A Fantastic Sponsor or Business Coach
No. 3 – A Millionaire Mindset
No. 4 – A Big Dream That Fuels Your Engine
No. 5 – A Strong Desire to Succeed
No. 6 – A Powerful Belief in Your Own Ability
No. 7 – A Stubborn Determination to Keep Going
No. 8 – A Continuing Education
No. 9 – A Purpose Beyond The Money
No. 10 – A Product You Can Connect With PersonallyIn this article we focus on the importance of having A FANTASTIC SPONSOR OR BUSINESS COACH. Let me start with a question: at what point did you realize that you weren’t going to make a million dollars in your first month with the ‘easy system’ you purchased? We’ve all heard the saying that money doesn’t grow on trees. This is especially true for home based businesses. Most of us begin our online business enterprises with big plans and ambitious goals only to realize very quickly that marketing on the internet is like visiting another planet. There is so much to learn that you can be overwhelmed to the point of paralysis. 
 
Many companies have training modules that are designed to guide you through the process of setting up and running a website, choosing from the various marketing strategies, following up with leads, etc. Where a lot of them fall short though, is in the details. I can’t tell you how many companies I bought into that immediately starting telling me to join a list builder and send out ezines, or upload videos to YouTube and write a blog, and then concluded with a big you-can-do-it statement.My reaction was always the same: What’s a ‘list builder’; a who-zine? I didn’t own a video camera, and I thought a blog was something my cat had coughed up. When you’re new to all this, where do you even begin? Many people at this point will give up, because it is so overwhelming.
 
But I say take heart! It’s a matter of finding a mentor, a guide who will take you by the hand and set your feet upon the path to success. Making number two on my list of 10 best home based business success tools is having a fantastic sponsor or business coach; someone on the sidelines cheering you on, answering your questions, guiding you to resources for training that can cut your learning curve in half and keep you pushing forward through every roadblock. Find yourself a mentor who will be available, one who will offer constructive criticism, will help you set goals and formalize a plan to help you achieve them. This can make the difference between spinning your wheels and exploding your sales beyond your wildest expectations.
 
If you’re still looking for a company to partner with, your due diligence should include interviewing your potential sponsor in-depth. If your sponsor is not 100% motivated to help you succeed with a plan in place for doing so, try to find another one. If you can’t find one in the company you are considering, then start looking for a different company, because chances are that company doesn’t put a huge emphasis on coaching.
 
If you are already partnered up with a company you like, but your sponsor isn’t readily available to you for help and guidance, don’t worry. There are plenty of independent business coaches out there who specialize in teaching you how to build your customer base, attract leads, drive traffic to your website. Research them thoroughly because they are NOT all alike. Start with one concept that you want to master, like blogging, or article marketing, or even setting up a website homepage; find a coach or mentor who offers services in that skill set, then avail yourself of any free material they offer first. If you find that these resources offer good content, something you can actually use, then it might be worth it to purchase their educational product or service.
 
A fantastic sponsor or business coach will put you miles ahead of your competition. And here’s a little gold nugget in your search for the right one: any mentor worth his salt will focus first on getting your mind wrapped around success. They will introduce you to number three of my 10 best home based business success tools, which I’ll cover in detail in my next article in the series: No 3 – A Millionaire Mindset.

Home Based Business tax saving strategies should be one of your primary business goals for a successful business. Working from home has many advantages and disadvantages but one primary benefit you can derive from your home based business is your tax saving benefits. If you have a home business, you need to be fully aware that you will have a variety of tax deductions that you can claim as benefits to help offset your business expenses.Tax Benefits for home based business sole proprietors:Before starting up a business, it is important to determine the most advantageous setup for your business by consulting a tax accountant or an attorney. Some of the benefits of establishing a business as a sole proprietorship are as follows.Easier tax returns to file: Tax returns can be filed easier for a sole proprietorship because, generally, you don’t need to provide lengthy and complicated forms. Normally, you only need to fill out a short one or two page IRS form. Generally, these forms are simple enough that you can complete them yourself.Free from mandatory audit: Filing your own taxes can you a lot of money if you don’t need to pay for an external audit or to hire an Accountant or Tax Consultant to file your taxes.Dissolution of business: A Sole proprietorship may not have tax implications if you wish to dissolve your business if you don’t have a lot of business assets that you have accumulated.You can personally manage your expenses and therefore, your deductions: As a business owner, you can determine your expenses and better manage your cash flow and payroll expenses. You can manage your finances and make expense adjustments that will benefit you through your tax write offs.Healthcare for you as a business principal and your employees is a deductable expense. Normally, most Proprietors don’t realize that healthcare is a tax deduction and therefore fail to take advantage of this valuable benefit. You will need to check with your Accountant or Tax Consultant to find out the limitations on these deductions.You will need to fully understand that no matter what type of business structure you form, you will need to report your income, profit and loses and other financial information on tax returns. An advantage with your home based business is that your business income counts towards your personal income and any loses that your business incurs may also be deductible to reduce your personal taxes as well.Deductions and Claims:Additional possible deductions for your Home Based Business include your business portion of your home expenses. To find out how much you can claim you need to calculate the amount of space you are using for your business. Suppose you are using 10% of your space for work, you can claim 10% of your heating expenses for the days for deduction. This results in major tax savings.You may also be able to claim a percentage of the following expenses also. However, make sure to verify that they are deductible with an Accountant, Tax Consultant and/or with your local tax office.• Mortgage• Rent• Telephone• Electricity• Internet• Home insuranceApart from the above expenses, you may also be able to deduct these additional indirect expenses incurred with regard to your business:• Meals and entertainment for business related reasons• Advertising Costs• Business tools like computer, printer and paperIRS Restrictions regarding these deductions:To deduct expenses related to business you need to meet the following requirements.• The business space should be used exclusively for the principal business activities.• The space should be exclusive place where you meet your clients for business purposes. • The space should be used for your personal use for doing normal daily business activities (i.e. phone calls, bookwork and etc.)Home based businesses are great tax shelters. Though the expenses you incur in your home based business are tax deductible, the tax law varies from Country to Country and State to State. Therefore, you’ll need to find out from your local jurisdiction about the deductions which can you can legally claim for your specific business.