Podcast: Lisa Tobias, award-winning Dominos Pizza franchisee

Podcast: Lisa Tobias, award-winning Dominos Pizza franchisee

If you're a mum who is thinking about buying a franchise but have some concerns, then you really need to take out six minutes right now to listen to this podcast. Lisa Tobias is just 32 years of age - but because Lisa actually started working for a branch of Domino's Pizza in one of the stores, climbing up the ranks, before deciding that she wanted to own a store of her very own...or five! Listen to the podcast below to see how Lisa has achieved such success, and hear her tips and advice for mums who are interested in running their own franchises.
Podcast: Avon Lady calling…could you be successful with Avon?

Podcast: Avon Lady calling…could you be successful with Avon?

At Motherswhowork.co.uk towers, it never ceases to amaze us how much mums can pack into their days, and their lives when it comes to achieving success - we've spoken with so many women over the years, and most of the time as unique as a story is, some deja vu often crops up because there are often similarities. Enter Abiodun Oloukun - a married mum of two, who runs a successful business with her husband...and is also an avon lady!
Calling all business mums, mummy bloggers and parenting-focused service and product providers

Calling all business mums, mummy bloggers and parenting-focused service and product providers

Working mums have a lot of buying power, and research shows women tend to make the majority of purchasing decisions in the home. What better place, then, to showcase you products and services than our revamped (The Mumpreneur Directory - a fantastic directory that's buzzing with businesses targeting mums, mumpreneurs showcasing their products and services, and even bloggers.

How to really cut the cost of your home insurance

Saving money has become one of the key issues for many households in the current economic climate - especially those with children. The cost of childcare, property, fuel and food is all taking a toll on the purse strings...but you can save money on some things.

Consider entering a business award and see what it can do for your business

Entering awards is a great way to leverage your business profile
Entering awards is a great way to leverage your business profile
Whether you are self-employed or an employee, entering yourself for business awards can be extremely beneficial to your career. You don’t have to work for a huge multi-national company to consider entering awards – in fact there are a host of awards up for grabs that target a wide range of categories.

Gemma Johnson, 36, founder of the BaBeeCard should know. She’s won a number of awards in the years since running her business in 2007. “It gives you a great sense of direction to enter business awards, assured Gemma. “The process makes you focus on what you have achieved so far and where you want your career to go she adds.”

Postnatal depression can affect mums-to-be…so what should you do if you are still at work when it starts?

Postnatal depression (PND) may be common, but that doesn’t make it any easier for the women going through it. We regularly read about it in the media, we might know someone with it, or have at least followed a celebrity’s battle with it. However, despite the prevalence and awareness of postnatal depression, the reality is that women who are actually experiencing it, feel very, very alone.

Postnatal depression baby blues
Postnatal depression is often thought of as something that happens at home, but it can affect you in the workplace
It is estimated that PND affects around one in 10 mothers in the UK. PND usually develops in the first four to six weeks after childbirth, although in some cases it can develop several months later.

Having a baby is a huge adjustment for any woman, but can be more so if she is used to working full time. The majority of first time mothers are used to going out to work, and many find themselves feeling isolated or trapped at home with their baby, missing the social interaction and mental stimulation of work.

Despite missing work, returning to the workplace can trigger or exacerbate postnatal depression. Having a baby is hard, and trying to juggle a newborn with paid employment is even more stressful.

Looking for a new job? Here is a list of employers who actually value women in the workplace

Finding an employer that values your contribution is a good start to going back to work
Finding an employer that values your contribution is a good start to going back to work

Women still experience inequality in the workplace today – from the unnecessary and unfair gender pay gap, to sex discrimination when it comes to promotion or even getting job in the first place (especially if you of childbearing age), so it’s always a plus to see some employers doing the right thing by women, and valuing us.

If you’re looking for a new job, or thinning about returning to work after a break from employment to look after your children, then you will want to work for a company that sees the value that you have to bring, and not the potential problems (and often unavoidable ones), like a sick child, or childcare issues.

The Excellence In Practises Awards recognise large employers from the private and public sectors that have put gender issues firmly on their business agendas. In a moment, you’ll be able to see what employers are doing to empower women in the workplace.

It’s time for battle: are you a mum who feels inadequate at the school gates? Use the Easter Holidays to raise the bar

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If you are a mum of school aged children, you may well be relieved to get some respite – not of the school run, but because you can avoid other mums at the school gate…

And not, it’s not because of back biting, fake smiles, getting blanked by other mums or boring small talk (as annoying as they may be!), but it’s probably because you want a much-needed break from the indiscreet fashion and beauty contests or just feeling inadequate about your attempts to keep up appearances.

According to a recent surgery, 50% of mums feel under pressure to look good because of other mums and surprisingly only 10% feel the same pressure from celeb mums. But despite this, only a third of mums spend less than five minutes in the morning doing their make-up compared to one-fifth of women who do not have children.

How to set achievable goals for yourself

Don't fail to plan, or you really are planning to fail!
Don't fail to plan, or you really are planning to fail!

Do you ever feel like your day has ended with you doing a lot of things, but not achieving anything? It’s no wonder with all the juggling us parents have to do – but it’s also no excuse…

We are living in a very demanding world, and the reality is that there is simply not enough time to do everything that we want to do in a working day, so we just need to manage the time that we do have effectively so that we can get the most out of it.

With goal setting techniques, we cfor maximise the use of your time. here are some key goal setting techniques that you can start using today to maximise your time:

Take our advanced time management video course

We know that juggling a family and work commitments can be hard - whether you work full or part time, or whether you work for yourself or an employer. We promised to bring you a series of advanced videos for you to learn even more time management skills from, and here they are! The following six time management videos are for working mums who are serious about being as productive as possible with the time they have to share with so many demands.