Monday Mumpreneur with Helen Lindop

Every Monday we feature a mumpreneur who’s ready and willing to open up their lives to us.  They share with us their motivation, challenges and proudest moments in business and they also tell us how they take time to nurture themselves. It’s lovely to have them here at Mums Got A Business and we hope you enjoy connecting with them too.

I was delighted when Helen agreed to be a featured mumpreneur.  I just love her inspiring story.  Like many of us that don't want to put our children in full-time childcare and go back to work, Helen went about researching her options.  Little did she know that the research she was doing would turn into a business.

Your name: Helen Lindop

Your website: BusinessPlusBaby.com and EarnWhatYouDeserveasaMumpreneur.co.uk

Brief description:

Business Plus Baby is a blog dedicated to helping parents of young children grow family-friendly businesses. Earn What You Deserve as a Mumpreneur is an e-course I created when I saw many mums working incredibly hard but not making the money they deserved for all that effort.

How many children do you have?

I have a three-year-old daughter and a son who is about to turn two.

Where do you live?

Bedford, Bedfordshire.

PC or Mac?

PC - I haven't used a Mac since 1995! Oh, except for my iPod - does that count?

Tell us about your business

It all sprang from me wanting to become a mumpreneur...

What motivated you to become a mumpreneur?

I fully intended to go back to my old job as a trainer after my daughter was born but I just couldn't face putting her into childcare full-time. My job involved traveling and didn't really fit part-time hours anyway, so I needed a plan B. I'd been self employed before and knew this could be an option, but I had no idea how it would work around a baby. I started to research business ideas, then I published those on my blog, Business Plus Baby, in the hope that it would help other mums like me. Eventually that turned into the book 'Start a family Friendly Business: 129 Brilliant Business Ideas for Mums' which I co-wrote with Antonia Chitty. After that I created the  Earn What You Deserve as a Mumpreneur e-course and I now have a couple more projects in the pipeline.

What's been your biggest challenge in business?

Time and energy. I started off working around one baby, then when my daughter was 8 months old I found out I was pregnant with our son! Being pregnant when you've already got a baby is hard work and so is caring for two kids under two years of age. It's getting easier now they are 3 and nearly 2, but the last three years have been such a blur I'm really not sure how I got anything other than feeds and nappy changes done!

How have you overcome it?

A combination of determination (well, my husband would call it stubbornness...) and the fact that I had to do something apart from feed and change babies if I was going to stay sane 🙂

What's been your proudest business moment?

Holding Start a Family Friendly Business in my hands for the first time.

What's your catchphrase or favourite quote?

"The thought manifests as the word. The word manifests as the deed. The deed develops into habit. And the habit hardens into character. So watch the thought and its ways with care. And let it spring from love, born out of concern for all beings." The Buddha

What do you do to relax or nurture yourself?

I'm not sure I can remember how to relax - if I tried that I might completely seize up! Seriously though, I'm really not going to get much relaxation with two toddlers so these days I just enjoy a good chat with family and friends.

What was the last treat you bought for yourself?

I can't remember but I have a feeling my next treat is going to be a Kindle...

Favourite colour: Some days it's purple and others it's red.

Favourite flowers: Roses and poppies (red ones!)

What one piece of advice would you like to give to a new mumpreneur?

Go for it but a) do your research first - it'll save a lot of time and heartache and b) expect it to take 3 times longer than you think!

Fancy featuring as one of our amazing mums or dads? Drop me an email over on the contact page and I’ll be in touch.   And remember to drop by every Monday to welcome our latest profiled mum.