In addition to evaluating your strengths and weaknesses, it's important to define your business goals. For some people, the goal is the freedom to do what they want when they want, without anyone telling them otherwise. For others, the goal is financial security.

Setting goals is an integral part of choosing the business that's right for you. After all, if your business doesn't meet your personal goals, you probably won't be happy waking up each morning and trying to make the business a success. Sooner or later you'll stop putting forth the effort needed to make the concept work. When setting goals, aim for the following four qualities:

1. Specificity: You have a better chance achieving a goal if it is specific. For example, "Raising capital" isn't a specific goal but "raising $10,000 by July 1st" is on target.

2. Optimism: Be positive when you set your goals. "Being able to pay the bills" is not exactly an inspirational goal. "Achieving financial security" phrases your goal in a more positive manner, thus firing up your energy to attain it.

3. Ego gratification: Face it, many people go into business to satisfy their egos. Owning a business can be very ego-gratifying, especially if you are in a business that is considered glamorous or exciting. You need to decide how important ego gratification is to you and what business best fills that need.

4.Realism: If you set a goal to earn $100,000 a month when you have never earned that much in a year, that goal is unrealistic. Begin with small steps, such as increasing your monthly income by 25 percent. Once your first goal is met, you can reach for larger ones.

Short and long term: Short-term goals are attainable in a period of weeks to a year. Long term goals can be for five, 10 or even 20 years; they should be substantially greater than short-term goals but should still be realistic.

There are several factors to consider when setting goals:

* Income: Many entrepreneurs go into business to achieve financial security. Consider how much money you want to make during your first year of operation and each year thereafter, up to five years.

* Lifestyle: This includes areas such as travel, hours of work, investment of personal assets and geographic location. Are you willing to travel extensively or to move? How many hours are you willing to work? Which assets are you willing to risk?

* Type of work: When setting goals for type of work, you need to determine whether you like working outdoors, in an office, with computers, on the phone, with lots of people, with children and so on.

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