As you build your home based business, you will find many people who want to offer you help and advice. Some of this advice you may want to follow – others it is best to ignore. Here are some hints and tips on who will be keen to help and what you should do about it. 1. Family; whenever a loved one takes the decision to start a home based business, family members are usually keen to offer their opinions. Unless they have done something similar, it is probably best to ignore this advice – as politely as you can of course! 2. Friends; While they may be a useful shoulder to cry on if you ever need it, friend’s advice, like families is probably not worth taking unless they have set up their own home based business. 3. The Bank Manager; while banks can offer you some sound advice, it is worth bearing in mind that Banks are in business for themselves and will be keen to have you using as many of their services as possible. 4. Accountant; accountants can have their part to play in your home based business. They are particularly useful for cost cutting tips and any advice given to you in this area should be carefully considered. 5. Business Consultants; If you want to use a business consultant, be aware that they will charge for their time. While their advice should be worth considering, you need to ensure you know exactly what you want to cover before you meet with them. Write down exactly what you want to ask to get the best value for money. 6. Financial Advisors; These can be very useful members of you ‘advice team.’ Firstly you should ensure that they are not affiliated to a bank. This means that their advice should be much more impartial than the Bank Managers. If you need to raise capital – they’re the best people to talk to. 7. Customers; it is vital for the growth of your home based business that you always listen to your customers. They want you to succeed and to do this you need to listen to and address their needs. 8. Suppliers; having good lines of communication with your suppliers is an excellent way to ensure your home based business moves forward. Talk to them regularly and you will be kept up to date with any of their new initiatives and they may in turn look to you to provide feedback on the service they offer. 9. Government Agencies; there are government funded agencies that can offer advice on setting up your home based business. They are well worth talking to. Usually independent and therefore impartial, they can offer great advice on how best to cut through red tape! 10. You!; you are your own best qualified business adviser. Take time out to think about your home based business and reflect on where it is going. Listen to your instincts. Chances are they will be right. In summary, when you run a home based business you will be bombarded from all sides by people offering advice. Take time to decide which is worth following and which you can afford to ignore and you will see your home based business grow and prosper.