Once you have done the marketing brainstorm, put things into action and reap the rewardsEvery…

Most people find that they can’t say no to someone asking them for something because they are so worried about upsetting them, or they lack the courage to turn down the request.

People often dislike disagreeing, or believe saying yes is easier than saying no. Others, just can’t say no.

However, there are often instances where it is best to say no to a request, so if you fit into any of the above descriptions, here is a quick lesson in the art of saying no.

Learn how to say no

Adopt simple strategies to say no, politely but firmly. You don’t need to make up stories in order to refuse – lies eventually catch up with you, and you end up wondering if the person you told it to believed you, or just feeling bad for not saying no. You don’t need to give lame excuses, either, you can say no without being dishonest.

Simon Cowell’s former girlfriend and X-Factor confidante Sinitta announced this week that she hopes to adopt her third child in 2011.

What some people don’t realise is that no matter whether the child being adopted is a baby or school-age, parents have the right to take adoption leave from work and could also be entitled to statutory adoption pay.

In order to receive either of these rights, there are certain criteria that adoptive parents must meet and these rules will differ depending on whether the child is adopted from abroad or within the UK.

It's never too late to take control of your career, and the retail industry provides numerous opportunities to re-ignite your working life.

Us working mums are forever juggling a number of balls at any given time, so it makes sense to use whatever is available to help stay on top of our constant organising and project managing.

If you are not a smartphone user, then you really are missing out. My personal favourit smartphone is the BlackBerry – I’ve been using them for a number of years now, and it really has revolutionised the way I work.

Here are some BlackBerry apps that I use to make juggling this website, two children, a full-time job, a hjusband and other businesses that little bit easier!

1. gwabbit

If you run a business, ten you’ll be used to getting emails from people that you know and want to follow up at some point. But it can be a bit of a  pain having to choose between adding their email address or their phone  number, then manually adding the one left over…not to mention their  addres is you need that, too. It’s no wonder then that it’s so easy to put  it off for later if all you want to do is get on with some admin.

Cari Parker, one of our BlackBerry Challenge winners gives a final round-up of her week working from her BlackBerry Curve.

The internet is one of the best places to discover business opportunities - you can do research, gather data, research competitors, and more. Find out other search engines besides Google that can help you find business opportunities.

You may have seen the public row on Twitter between West End star Denise Van Outen and fellow actress Natalie Cassidy over the right time to return to work after having children. What's your view on it?

In association with Global Entrepreneur Week (15th-21st November) Polly Marsh and Helen Wooldridge of Cuddledry will be launching a much-anticipated week-long ‘open clinic’ for anyone looking for help and inspiration to start a new business.

So, you’ve finally found a home-based business idea that you would like to put into action. Fantastic –  but with that excitement and energy, would it be wise to just take the plunge and start the business ad take everything as it comes? Well yes, and no…

When starting a new, home-based business you need to plan ahead. Yes, spontaneity is good, but you need to have a plan of action in terms of how you’ll run the business, how you will market your business, how you will pay the bills – your running costs and how you will pay your bills.

Planning for your home-based business is important because it helps you reach a goal for the future, it also helps if you are trying to get financing for your home-based business.

Mumpreneur and CEO of Babeecard Gemma Johnson of launched her prepaid Mastercard business in 2007 to help families save money on their shopping.

In today’s competitive job market employers are more inclined to find people who can contribute to the growth of the company and not just boost its productivity.

Whether it's at work, at a job interview, when speaking to potential clients or customers, how you communicate can have a huge impact on your success.

When thinking about a career change, or changing jobs, there are a few things that you need to think about before you start making job applications.

As well as practical things like location, salary and the job market, when considering a career change, don’t forget to look into updating your skills and experience – especially if you are returning to work after taking a break.

Julie Sherwood is one of our two business mums who won a BlackBerry Curve and were taken to task on a challenge to see if she could run her business exclusively from the mobile phone. Did she suceed...?

If you listen to what’s in the media these days, you’ll no doubt feel that the job market is very competitive and you may even have convinced yourself that there are no jobs out there at all. But this is far from the case – you only need to look in the recruitment sections of newspapers and look online to see that there are jobs to be had!

Yes – it is true that there is now a lot of competition to get a job, but it is not impossible. What you need to do is make sure that your application stands out from the crowd.

Here are a few tips to help you get the edge in searching for a job and landing the job of your dreams.