You may be reading this article with a view to starting your own home based business. It maybe something you have been thinking about for sometime and haven’t taken any steps yet to make your ambition a reality. Today I’m not going to take you through the steps of how to start your own business, (you can find all the information you need in my earlier articles); but I am going to help you through the decision making process, by giving you 3 very good reasons why you should take action now and start getting things into motion.THE WORLDWIDE ECONOMYI imagine no one is in any doubt as to the severity of the global downturn. Yes, it probably started as a consequence of the greed and questionable business tactics of the world’s banking institutions, but the impact or fall-out has seen no boundaries. Thousands of businesses have shut down for ever. More people than ever we could have imagined, have lost their jobs and their plight is made all the worse because of the lack of availability of new jobs. Without jobs, people’s spending power diminishes. Without consumers, more businesses will be forced to close and render even more people jobless and dependent on state benefits.I appreciate I haven’t created a very rosy picture. The fact is, I believe in facing reality head on. No matter what politicians are telling us, things are going to remain extremely tough for at least a generation to come. So why have I started on such a gloomy note? Well, as someone once said to me, “If you don’t know where you are, how do you know where you are going?” It’s a simple bit of prose, but when you stop to think about it, it has deep significance for everyone.So where are we now? That’s simple to answer. We are in a position where we can no longer rely on traditional forms of income such as paid employment. i.e. jobs. But, and this is important, is this not the perfect time to start taking control of our own lives. After all, we have already learned the hard way, that we cannot trust bankers or politicians. In my 53 years, I cannot think of a more appropriate time than right now, to start a home based business.If you have been thinking about “taking the leap” for some time, I believe you should stop thinking, start planning and take positive action right now.AMBITIONYou may be one of the very fortunate ones who are in a work environment where your drive and ambition is not restricted in any way. Every day provides you with a new challenge for you to rise to. You have the drive, desire and opportunity to really go-for-it and fulfill your true potential. If this is you right now, you are very fortunate. Most people are not in this situation however and crave the opportunity to really make something of their working lives.Ambition is a truly great personal asset. The question is how you are going to fulfill it? From my own experience, the answer is to start something of your own. Whether you are trained in childcare, secretarial work, law, marketing, writing and publishing or simply want to turn the skills you do have into a business; seize the opportunity. Your natural ambition and drive will see you through the start-up process as will your determination and effort. Once you get going, no one or anything can halt your progress. You can be as creative as you like; as ambitious as you want to be and best of all, nothing can stop your dreams turning into reality, except you. You become the master of your own destiny. The world and what is happening in it, is no longer your focus; your business is your priority and no one can take it away from you.START LIVING I don’t want to pretend that it will not take great effort and commitment to get your home based business up and running, because it will. But I guess you already know that. Yes, you will find obstacles along the way and you will encounter unforeseen problems which you just have to deal with. You will probably even have to change track along the way, based on your initial experiences.I have to tell you though, it is well worth your time and effort. Once you get your business up and running, the adrenalin rush is huge and your raise in self esteem knows no boundaries. You’ve always had this overriding thought in your head that if you just had the opportunity, you could be successful. When you realise that you are on your way to becoming successful, you also realise that you are capable of matching your ambition. At this point, you know your life no longer has any boundaries or restrictions placed upon it. You also realise that as you become even better at managing your business, you get more of the most precious commodity in the world – time. No, not big houses, flashy boats or cars, but precious time to spend with those who mean the most to you.You cannot buy time, you can only create it. The heading above says, start living. The most valuable fruit of your endeavours is time and when you have time, you can start living, not just existing.