We all have busy lives and for different reasons, the commute to work is a burden. Maybe you have a new puppy that needs a lot of attention, relatives coming into town or you have a youngster on their own schedule.

Whatever the reason, working from home beats out commuting and working for a barrage of bosses that you are sick of.

What may surprise you is it doesn’t have to cost a fortune to start your own business! Here are 3 affordable home-based business ideas to get out of the cubicle and into your own desk with a great view!

1. Life Coaching

Some of the most fulfilling work is helping others to succeed—while getting paid at the same time! Life coaching has become a huge market, especially in the corporate world.

What it basically entails is helping others reach their goals by helping them make plans and execute those plans.

People need a “push” for lots of things: starting a business, training for a career or finding what they’re good at. Life coaches serve an essential role in keeping people on track so they get where they want to be. Really effective life coaches are ALWAYS in high demand.

2. Freelance Writing

Always considered yourself a good writer, but can never catch a break? Try writing that epic novel in your spare time and pick up some freelance writing work in the meantime.

Freelance writing offers the opportunity to set your own schedule (as long as you meet deadlines!) and write about a host of interesting topics.

There are tons of resources for finding clients online (such as sites like elance.com) and you can be up and running TODAY.

Oh, and if you can write SALES COPY, you can do very well as a freelancer. Plus this skill will help you in ANY business in the future. When I first started building my business, I apprenticed to a sales copywriter. It was fantastic training and taught me so much about sales and marketing.

3. Affiliate Marketing

This is how I started, and with less than $100 in my pocket. Basically, you sell other people’s stuff. Every time somebody purchases a product by clicking on one of your links, you get a PERCENTAGE of the sale. It’s a cool business model.

To get started, all you need is a blog and some basic Internet marketing skills. Websites like Clickbank and Amazon provide you with all the products you could ever want to sell… for free!

With these business models, being your own boss does not have to be a distant dream!