Forbes says 1 in 5 Americans works from home. That's millions of people who are earning a living with a job, or at least a lot of folks who are trying.

By now just about everybody has had the opportunity to try working from home. And sadly, most didn't make much money at it. You pay to get started, spend money on marketing and advertising, then maybe earn $20 here and there. Before long you wake up and say this isn't worth the trouble and you give up.

But it doesn't have to be that way. You CAN work from home and earn a very good part-time income in your spare time. Many people leverage their business into a full-time income while still just working a few minutes per week.

That means you can keep your job, maintain your family responsibilities, and still have time to earn a good income with your home based business.

Here are some things to look for when choosing a business:

1. It should be easy to learn. Years ago I started Cajun Country Candies selling candy my family made. I offered people the opportunity to help me spread the word and collect a commission. I built the organization to 500,000 members and a very good income for myself.

The key to this success is my system was VERY SIMPLE. Anyone could learn it in about a minute. That made the business accessible for folks who were already very busy working a job or two.

The opportunity you chose should have good training materials and be interesting to you. If it's dry, boring, and hard to figure out -- walk away. You don't need that in your life and it probably isn't going to make any money for you.

2. You business shouldn't take a lot of time. Let's face it. You're already busy enough. You don't need to stay up nights and work all weekend just to get your business earning. These days with modern automation you should be able to work an at-home business in a few minutes per week.

3. Don't sell. Most people hate selling. So go figure why most opportunities demand members email, make phone calls, knock on doors and submit themselves to tons of rejection.

I learned a long time ago a truly good opportunity needs to have a professional team do all the selling. That way pros who know what they are doing and like to sell are talking with customers and promoting sales.

YOU, the member, don't have to sell or talk to customers.

4. All the tools and systems you need to earn should be included in the opportunity. You should get everything you need right up front and not have to go out and buy all of it separately from vendors. This is the part that usually costs people every cent they've got. By making sure much of what you need is included, you won't have any more out of pocket expense.

5. Members help each other. This is a feature I always look for. It's much better to have a friend explain the business to you than figuring it out for yourself from dry tutorials.

Use these tips to find a great home based business for yourself. Then jump in and give it all you've got. These days it's easy to earn without having to commute to a job.