Running a home-based business has its own set of challenges so anything that can be done to maximize your efforts should surely be at the top of your to-do list.
Given the nature of a home-based business - unstructured environment, absence of co-worker support and interaction, potential for distraction - it is no wonder so many home-based businesses either fail or run into problems in their first few years.
To minimize the chances of failure here are seven highly effective strategies to keep you focused and driven in running your home-based business:

1. * Set daily goals that are based on your business plan.
   Be sure that these goals support your overall plan so that you can get a feel that you are indeed executing properly and in a timely manner.
   
2. * From your goals, develop a to-do list and prioritize the tasks using a strategy that best suit your situation.
   For example, if you need to make calls to a different time zone, then that may affect what gets done when.
   Also some tasks may depend on the outcome of others and have to be prioritized accordingly.
   
3. * Develop and maintain a regular work schedule.
   Working a home based business gives you the flexibility with your time but for this same reason you can end up not using it wisely if there is too much flexibility.
   
4. * Get away from the home-office on a regular basis.
   Ideally, you should have set times that you attend professional meetings or luncheons.
   This keeps your thinking fresh and you are likely to pick up new ideas along the way.
   
5. * As much as possible, set up your home office to look and feel like a real office.
   It is tempting to have regular household stuff lying around but an office environment helps in setting the tone for serious and focused work.
   
6. * Adopt some rituals or tasks that you do at the same time every day that signals the beginning of your work day.
   For example, you may want to scan the papers, read an inspirational piece or even get a cup of coffee.
   Anything that once started will be a signal to your brain that the work-day has started.
   
7. * Reward yourself when critical milestones are met and review the actions taken to get to these milestones.
   Not only will you feel motivated to continue on to the next milestones, but you will now have a good idea of which actions and approaches were effective and how to use these in the future.
   

Running a home-based business does take a lot of organizing but given its nature, without effective strategies, even the best of plans and organizing can go wrong.
The above if properly adopted over time can significantly increase your chances at success with your business.