Your CV may be bristling with relevant experience and qualifications, and be elegantly presented, but it may all be for nothing if you don’t know how to interview, and the all-important first step is doing your homework.

Research is the absolute foundation stone of a successful interview. It puts you at ease, allows you to communicate confidently and knowledgeably and will really impress your interviewer. So where to start?

Whenever I tell people that I work from home I am often told how lucky I must be. People who have never worked from home since they were given homework as a school pupil then (uninvited) describe the image they have of my normal working day. This fantasy normally involves me waking up then sitting upright in bed casually tapping away on a laptop while devoting most of my energies to watching daytime television.

I have learnt many things since becoming a mother.  One of the very first things I learnt was to treasure sleep.

When you're a child there is an abundance of sleep and people are always trying to make you go to sleep or saying you need to have more of it even if you don't want it.  I remember long summer evenings lying in my bed trying to go to sleep even though it was still light outside and I could hear my father mowing the lawn. My children are in the phase of trying every trick they know to avoid actually going to bed, from “just one more story please Mummy” to asking the babysitter when she is tucking them up at night if she would like them to show her where the coffee is kept!

For many of us, this is the worst recession we can remember. We are all tightening the purse strings. It appears that we are shunning nights out. However, we are not sitting in front of the television but instead spending a little of that extra time enjoying ourselves!

by Rebecca Jones

I've been musing about writing a book since I began working with Motivating Mum but have had to put my ideas on hold, while I get to grips with actually running the business first. Looking at Business in Red Shoes, this is the book I would like to have written, well laid out, with a friendly and engaging style, and including all the tips that I might have given to mums starting out in business, with many more of Rebecca's own.

I'll be honest, I first decided to start out in business when I saw an ad for a popular distributorship business, and signed up on the spot, without much thought to the whys, hows and wheres.  A lot of my business life has been haphazard like that - I tend to be a creature of impulse, and as a result, some of my ideas have been successful and some have failed, until eventually (by luck more than judgement) I have hit on a combination of businesses that suit me.

The method that Rebecca suggests that you follow, is a lot more sensible, and if I had seen this book and gone through it in detail before starting my business ventures, i could have saved myself a lot of fruitless hard work and money.  Chapter by chapter she goes through a series of questions that you should ask yourself before taking on or starting a new business venture.  There are no right or wrong answers - every woman is different and you must try to find the business that best suits your skills and personality, and which you are passionate about.

Would you consider becoming a mumpreneur, the new buzzword for an entrepreneurial mum? It can be a tough act to juggle both motherhood and a career. With this in mind many women are now choosing to open small businesses for some extra cash and a better work life balance. Running a business from home allows flexibility, financial independence, a sense of purpose and more quality time with baby.

You may be surprised at the sheer variety of franchise businesses. We will have a look at the different types of franchise businesses that can be run from home on a part-time basis with low investment required. The great thing about buying into a franchise opportunity is that you are using a working business model and you get assistance from the franchisor every step of the way. With a franchise or business opportunity, the business has been proven to work for others, so you can get on with making money instead of trying to find and test out a new idea. With the part-time franchise route you can choose just how much you want to work.

Let’s look at how you can benefit doing something that you love!

Deciding what to wear during your pregnancy can seem to be especially daunting. During pregnancy, your body will go through more change than it has seen since childhood and it can be hard for some women to accept their new figures. Finding clothes that suit you can be more challenging because over the years you have got used to matching your own shape to your personal style and now you may suddenly feel like you are buying clothes for someone else.

If you’re a busy mother who is working hard to support your child or children, enrolling for some form of part time education can be a great way of enhancing your career prospects. This is particularly useful for women who have entered motherhood at a young age, who may not have the time or finances to attend full time education. With colleges such as Birkbeck, a constituent college of the University in London, offering more part-time evening courses, and a host of quality distance learning courses, mums wishing to gain more qualifications to advance their careers have more options than ever before.