Whether it be Marketing, Poker Playing, Web Page Development, or making widgets - a home based business is much much harder than all of these "make 9000$ a month!" schemes let you know. It takes an enormous amount of self-discipline to be able to support yourself from home - and in more ways than you would think.

You get to wake up whenever you want. Work for as long as you want. Eat, Sleep, and Play whenever you feel like it. For most people, this freedom can be overwhelming. Many are unable to fully balance out all of their necessary daily activities simply because of how easy it is to slack off.

"Wow, I made 1000$ yesterday! That calls for a day off!" - WRONG!

This kind of thinking is short-term and will eventually put you in a much more difficult financial situation if these thoughts go unchecked.

Developing a daily routine is key to any successful home business, and is usually overlooked in business blogs or "Get rich quick" books.

Below, I will highlight and quickly explain the 5 key ingredients to maintaining a healthy, successful, home-based income.

1) Regular Sleep Schedule - This is fairly self-explanatory. Waking up and falling asleep at regular times helps keep your mind balanced, you think more clearly, and you can focus on your profession much better than you could with sporadic sleeping patterns. Save your late-night bar trips for the weekends. Just because your boss is not going to chew you out for waking up 2 hours later than normal - does not mean that there wont be negative effects if you do.

2) Exercise and Diet - This is EXTREMELY important and usually overlooked by home-based professionals. Eating right and exercising are a very important part of a balanced day. Your mind is much quicker and more efficient after a workout, and your body is directly effected by the things you consume during the day. When I was playing poker professionally, I would spend 1-2 hours at the tables, and then take 15 minutes to do floor exercises between poker sessions. This kept me sharp, focused, and calm while I was playing. I made decisions faster and more accurately. Exercise plays a major role in every persons' life.

3) Maintaining a Social Life - This aspect of your day needs to be kept in check on both ends. You definitely want to go out and socialize on a regular basis. It will help you develop connections for your business, it is enjoyable to be around the people you like, and it will keep you from losing your sanity to solitude. On the other end - do not go overboard and commit too much of your time to your friends. If you let them, your friends will consume way too much of your personal time. Time you could spend making more money, or maintaining your balanced lifestyle. As is the case with all things in life - a balance is needed.

4) Avoid Excessive Alcohol/Recreational Drugs - Poker players need to be especially cautious of this, as many will run into much more money than they have ever had before. A recreational smoker can turn into a full-blown pothead very quickly. I am not going to try to claim that any of these things are going to hurt you very much if used in moderation. We have all experimented in our time, and there is nothing wrong with enjoying yourself occasionally - but the kind of money that home based businesses bring in can quickly turn an enjoyable past-time into a daily habit. You ca not work when you are drunk. You can work, but maybe at 50% productivity, when you are stoned. These are things that will cut deeply into your profits if you let them, and in more ways than one.

5) WORK YOUR ASS OFF - When it is time to sit down and work - do it as efficiently and as well as you can. This is the income you (and perhaps your family) live off of. This is your profession. Be the best every day and work hard every day. Put in those hours at the poker table. Write all of those articles to drive traffic to your website. Make and promote those widgets as hard as you can. If the television is on in the same room you are working - you are giving up time, attention, and essentially money.

It took me a good year and a half before I really understood the responsibilities that come with working from home. Now that I have my routine down, I rarely break it. I am in great shape, I am healthy, and I can focus on work for the 8+ hours a day I need to. I am confident that I will be able to continue doing this as long as I please.

I hope this helps the rest of you aspiring self-made millionaires.