More and more people are realizing that they can actually have a low cost competitive advantage over large firms by working from home. This low overhead advantage however can translate into a chaotic imbalance between business and family life if proper boundaries aren't set.

Home business owners roll out of bed in the morning and head off for work--still wearing their pajamas. They work from their dining room tables, move inventory in their cupboards and arrange meetings in the lobbies of their local hotels. They set their own schedules, jog on the beach during their lunch breaks and some even give out their house keys to employees across the city.

This is what life is like for Andrew Aussie, co-founder of Honest Foods, a natural foods company; Stacey Roney, founder of Beauty on Call, a staffing agency for the beauty industry; and Meg McAllister and Darcie Rowan, co-founders of McAllister Communications, a PR firm.

Using their homes as their corporate headquarters, these entrepreneurs, along with more and more others, are running successful businesses without have to walk out their front doors.

A February 2004 study by the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers indicates that approximately one in 10 U.S. households operate some type of full- or part-time home based business. And these businesses are more than holding their own.

A May 2006 study released by the SBA's Office of Advocacy reveals that America's home based sole proprietors generate $102 billion in annual revenue. As it grows in popularity and profits, home based business is being perceived in a much more favorable and acceptable light.

According to Beverley Williams, a home business advocate for the past two decades, running a business from home was once frowned upon or dismissed as a hobby for moms seeking extra money.

Now, home based business is widely accepted and is attracting both men and women. Aussie, Roney, McAllister and Rowan learned from experience, learn operating technique from those who have successful done what they're trying to do and have mastered the discipline.

Here, these successful entrepreneurs open up about the ins and outs of running a business from home, including how to ward off loneliness, set up shop, deal with zoning laws and insurance issues, bring employees into the home and project a professional image.

How They Made the Transition

Deciding that the quality and taste of their product or service was more important than the luxury of their workspace, Aussie, 39, and Mark Oliver, 58, decided to launch Honest Foods in April 2006 from Aussie's Del Mar, California, home. This made it possible for him to invest the majority of their startup capital into two years of research and development.

This distinct work environment change, a major adjustment for Aussie, was much different from the highly social office environment to which he was accustomed. For 11 years, Aussie had worked in sales and marketing for Kashi Co., where he managed a team of 12 people and was surrounded by 60 to 70 coworkers.

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