“Capitalizing on a Chore Everyone Hates”

“I don’t do windows,” is a line heard all too often by prospective employers​—and perhaps husbands. Writer Joan Libman, however, says there is a way to cash in on people’s aversion to washing windows: starting a window-washing business! She calls this “capitalizing on a chore everyone hates.”

This was just one of 50 suggestions given in Family Circle magazine (10/26/82) to people who would like to start businesses they could run from their homes. Some of the ideas require a bit of specialized knowledge (“Antiques Appraisals,” for example). Others require far less: providing hot meals for busy families, house sitting for out-of-town homeowners, messenger services, household-chore services, and so forth. Can you, too, think of a chore “everyone hates” that you would be willing to perform for the right price? Then you may be on the way to having your own home business. But before you leap, take a good look. Says Joan Libman: “Slowing down can save you from some dreadful, as well as costly, mistakes.” Organizing yourself, studying your market, planning your finances and getting advice are some of the suggestions she offers for the would-be, home entrepreneur.