Are you sitting down? Because I'm about to tell you something that may shock you. There are as many varieties of business opportunities online as there are off.

It's funny how a misconception can float around like a hotair balloon. Until you poke a hole in it. If someone were to tell you that dentistry is the only possible offline profession available, you'd know they were misinformed. And you wouldn't hesitate to fill them in on the opportunities in law and accounting and medicine and the like.

Yet 'online business' has come to mean a single mysterious process involving unknowable codes, such as HTML and java script, and, of course, such esoteric marketing strategies as the infamous PPC.

Well, don't let all those weird letter combinations keep you from the truth: there's an online business that's not only right for you, but one that you can actually master before you're ready to cash in on your 401K. Or Social Security. Depending on what era you were born into.

So whoever you are -- however young or old, grandparent or grandchild, or somewhere in-between -- let's take a look at what's out there for YOU:

Affiliate marketing. Actually, this is usually what is meant by 'online business.' And it's a great way to get your feet wet in the wide, wide world of eCommerce. You don't even need a website. You just sell other people's stuff on a commission basis.

eBay. It's like having your own little store in a great big mall. Only without the exorbitant rent. And don't worry: eBay has plenty of tutorials to show you how it's done. Heck, there's even an eBay University!

eBooks. Be an author. Why not? I'm willing to bet there's something you know that most people don't. The only reason you think everybody knows it already is -- because you do!

Create and sell your own product - - or sell someone else's. The possibilities are limited only by your imagination. You can sell digital items of your own creation, other people's digital items, stuff in the public domain, "real" stuff (toys, clothing, hand-made crafts . . . the list is endless), junk from your attic, whatever.

Sell what you love. Build a business around your personal passion. A hobby? Your life's calling? Yes: it really is possible to make money doing the thing that matters most to you.

Sell yourself. That's right: sell what you already do or know in the offline world. Bookkeeping. Copywriting. Secretarial skills. Web Design. Sewing. Carpentry. Macram . Reading Tarot cards.

The thing is, my friend, Internet business does not come in one-size-fits-all. There's an online opportunity out there with your name on it. All you need is an open mind. And the will to try. And, yes: I'm talking to YOU.