It is indeed exciting to start a home based business after having left the corporate world. Now you are your own boss and you can make your own decisions. However, in order to successfully run your business you’ll need something more. You need to be assertive. Assertiveness is a necessary virtue for success with any business venture.Being assertive can be advantageous to your business since people will not be able to take you for granted. Here is how to be assertive:Let others know — you mean business:You wouldn’t mind putting in extra hours on your own home based business because it is your baby. Your business will place demands for just that and you’ll need to respond to those demands in a professional manner.Therefore, you’ll need to be assertive and tell others that your business runs from your home and it means a lot to you and your future. They’ll need to take you and your work seriously.Simply because you don’t put on your office wear and leave your home at specified hours, does not mean you do not have strict schedules to follow.Standard operating procedure:You’ll need to be assertive and let your family know about your working hours so that they do not disturb you with other domestic activities during those hours. Make them understand that you are running a home based business which actually requires more of you than what your previous job did.Nobody would have asked you to perform domestic chores during office hours, if you would have been working in a conventional office.Learn to say no:Your friends and family might loiter around your home office and make a lot of noise. You wouldn’t call that an ideal setup for doing something constructive. You will need to be assertive and tell them that their presence out there during your working hours is not helping you.Some of the friends might take you for granted and they might even walk in to your home office with a lit cigarette. This is absolutely unacceptable and you’ll need to tell them not to repeat such behavior again. Just because you’re working from home does not mean that you are free and available for everyone at all times.Don’t be too nice at the cost of your business:Your home based business is bound to suffer if you are unable to work without being disturbed. You must learn not to feel obligated or pressured when you are asked for a favor by your friends or relatives.It is absolutely necessary not to give in to unreasonable demands from your close friends and family members. You’ll need to be assertive in order to cultivate a professional work environment at your home office.Being assertive is not being arrogant:If you are assertive for the cause of your business, rest assured you are not arrogant, although there is a hairline difference between the two characteristics.It is always good to be assertive for the sake of your home based business. Assertiveness makes you strong in order to face the tough business challenges ahead.