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In a recent survey that I conducted among working mothers who desire to become stay-at-home mothers, the most overwhelming question was, "How do I work from home and have enough money to pay my bills." Now, you may be saying to yourself "Brian, that's an obvious question!" However, the most obvious questions often have very elusive answers - especially in a fast paced society like we live in today.

Out of sheer frustration, you turn to the very thing that perplexed you in the first place - the Internet. You type in a search for "Online Business" or "Work From Home," and you are literally bombarded with so much information that your head begins to ache. Yet, after all of your "research," it still seems like you are missing something.

When I started my online business career, I experienced the exact same things. Everytime I purchased a "how-to" product, I was left with more questions than answers; it seemd to be a never ending loop of information overload. In fact, it was so overwhelming that I completely stopped trying to persue online business opportunities for over a year.

Sure, I knew that the internet could provide a very healthy income for my family and me, but at the time, it seemed easier to revert back to doing what was familiar rather than subject myself to increasing frustration.

Then one day, it dawned on me. Back in the late 90's, I was working for a very large organization in our area and was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the growing unrealistic expectations and organizational politics. This dissatisfaction drove my swelling entrepreneurial spirit, and I went into business for myself. Now, the key here is how I did it.

While working for that large organization, I started my own business on the side. It took me approximately twelve months to get it to the point that I could quit working for someone else. With this in mind, I simply applied this same principle to developing an online business. Every spare moment that I had was devoted to my online business - even if it meant staying up after the family had gone to bed or getting up before they did. Time became my ally.

Amazingly, unlike a real-world brick-and-mortar business, the power of the Internet allows for much more rapid growth. This means you reach your personal and financial goals a lot sooner. The Internet also allows you to grow with a lot less expense as well.

Here are three steps that I have found most helpful in my online business career:

1. Online Business Step One - Strategize:

This is probably the longest step. An analogy that I love to use involves building askyscraper. If you have ever lived in (or visited) a large city, it is not uncommon to see one or more high rise construction projects taking place at the same time. The common denominator that every successful high rise construction project has is the amount of time, energy, and effort that is placed on laying the foundation. Every engineer knows that the visible structure is only as stable as the foundation it sits upon. The same holds true for starting an online business, you have to place some time, energy, and effort into knowing where you are going and what you are going to do when you get there.

2. Online Business Step Two - Monetize:

This is the step that everyone loves, yet it is the one that most people have problems with. Most people haveproblems with this step because they fail to carry out step #1. Jumping straight to this step is a sure recipe for disaster. By the time you get here, you should have a clear idea of your target market (niche market), the product(s) that they need, how much they are willing to pay, and the general idea of how you are going to deliver this to them. This step is simply for putting all of your plans into action.

3. Online Business Step Three - Systematize:

I love this step because it makes my online business life so much easier. This is where I place my online business on auto-pilot. This step is what allows me to start my next online business. Like I said earlier, most of the effort is in step #1, so once I get to the "Systematize" step, I begin planning my next project.

It's really that simple. It is a three step cycle that will make you a lot of money in your online business if you will simply take the time to learn how to apply it.