Posts from the ‘Women in Biz’ Category
This March, I’m heading to the Wine Sisterhood Gathering in Napa. The event is organized by one of my digital marketing clients – the Wine Sisterhood – with a goal to educate, empower and inspire women through their community, content and other digital initiatives.
The Gathering blends a wine and food tasting experience throughout the Napa Valley with workshops about digital, social and mobile media. I’ll be teaching a workshop about using mobile apps for community building and marketing and Danielle Smith will be leading a session on digital video and media training. Not to mention a wine and cheese tasting workshop and other tasty – I mean educational – learning opportunities.
Here are 6 reasons why I love the Wine Sisterhood Gathering and am so excited to be there again this year. Read more
I’m going to be on the road again soon, and am so excited to be speaking at several conferences this month. It’s going to be a busy one!
Here’s a brief rundown of where I’ll be. I really hope to meet up with some of you while I’m on the East Coast. It will be 17 hours of travel – with a 4-year-old – to get there, but I know it will be well worth the trip.
May 19, 2011 - 2:15 PM - Miami, FL Miami Science Museum – Empowered Woman
Elevate Your Online Presence (Panel) – Hashtag: #ewssmiami
I’m speaking on a panel with some powerhouse women Denise Jacobs (@denisejacobs), Lynn Ponder (@ponderful), Mande White (@mandewhite) and Sandi Abbott (@xpressomarketin). We will each get about 5 minutes to distill down our best tips for social media and email marketing.
May 21, 2011 - 9:00 AM - Miami Beach, FL Miami Beach Convention Center – SheCon
Keynote Panel: The Women of Social Media. Hashtag – #shecon
10:00 AM - Miami Beach, FL Miami Beach Convention Center - SheCon
Meet & Greet and Book Signing (The Everything Blogging Book).
5:00 PM - Miami Beach, FL Miami Beach Convention Center - SheCon
Closing Keynote at SheCon: Smart Ways to Use Future Tech and Social Media.
The description of this talk: You’ve heard the new buzzwords – Location-based networks, QR Codes, Augmented Reality, M-marketing and more – but who has enough time – or brain power – to keep up with it all? Get rid of those blank stares and eyes glazing over. Take charge of technology. Here’s a crash course in what’s on the horizon for the next few years and how it impacts your blog, your work and your life.
If you’re at SheCon, I’ll also be helping to promote the Wine Sisterhood Drink-u-lator app for iPhone and Android. While sipping Wine Sisterhood wine, of course. Check out the Wine Sisterhood Sassy Suite Friday and Saturday nights (May 20 & 21) starting at 7pm at the Shelborne Hotel. Look for updates for the Suite # on Twitter by following us: @winesisterhood. The hashtag for that is #winesister. In the meanwhile, don’t forget to “like” their page on Facebook.
May 26, 2011 - 9:00 AM - New York, New York Jacob Javits Center –Blogworld Expo
Speak Up: Empowering Women to Find Their Voices (presenting with C.C. Chapman). Hashtag – #bweeast
The description of this talk: Despite all of our best efforts, there is still a dearth of female speakers at business, tech and venture conferences, particularly keynoters. But we can all do something about this imbalance, including women themselves. This workshop is a dynamic, interactive session about overcoming fear in public speaking and taking deliberate steps to craft speaking proposals.
Will you be attending any of these conferences? Where will your travels take you next?
Check out my friend Shelly Kramer’s blog post about speaking at Blogworld Expo East (her post inspired this post).
I’ve been asked numerous times over the last several years, “Why do you wear that tiara and boa?” I often vary my answer depending on mood and context, and all the answers I give are valid because the reasons are many.
Over time, I’ve learned that the reasons people ask are many as well, and in some cases, people seem to be waiting to see what I say before they make a final decision about what they think of my accessories. That’s fine. I appreciate that my choice of adornment hits people in different ways so I expect the myriad of reactions. In general, however, they have been overwhelmingly positive.
My First Time
Here is the backstory to when and why I adopted this “look.”
I was given my first “official” boa at BlogHer years ago and swiped a pink tiara from my then 3-year-old’s dressup trunk and brought them to Blissdom two years ago when I co-presented with Maya Bisineer of MemeTales. We taught a Wisdom Workshop for women about finding one’s voice. Both Maya and I stood in front of a room full of women telling our stories, some difficult and painful ones, putting ourselves out there and encouraging other women to be in touch with their life stories.
My premise for the workshop was that each of us has powerful life stories, experiences that give us a wisdom that we don’t give ourselves credit for, and by telling our stories to others – other women especially – we empower ourselves and empower others. I could almost hear women cringing inside with the on-the-spot writing assignments I was giving but when women began to share their stories, the energy was off the charts.
In honor of one woman really digging deep and being vulnerable and strong in front of us all, we adorned her with a tiara and boa and honored her courage. (Footnote: She told me recently that it was that experience that gave her the seeds of strength to leave an abusive husband. I am humbled by the power of what we were all able to do for her and what she was able to do for herself.)
As I left the workshop, I started to remove the tiara and boa, but as I exited the session room, people turned and smiled in my direction. It put me in a great mood so I kept both of them on the rest of the conference. When I was preparing for the next conference that year, I purchased a new metal and bead boa so my daughter could have hers back and promptly tucked it into my suitcase (it was conveniently bendable) along with a boa.
Before I put them on at the next conference (I think it was Web 2.0 Expo – a decidedly non-female event), I was terrified. “What are you THINKING?!” that little voice of self-doubt demanded. But then I shut that negative voice out and went out in full regalia. The response was fantastic and positive. I decided that I’d wear them at every conference and create a sort of trademark look for myself.
And you know what? It has worked wonders for me business-wise in ways I never imagined. Yes, business-wise. I’ve attracted more business and clients with this “look” than ever before – and all the RIGHT kinds of clients, the ones who “get it” and who appreciate strong branding, attracting attention, being out there and being visible.
I’ve realized over the last few years that the naysayers are probably people who I don’t want to do business with and probably don’t actually want to know. They aren’t “my kind of people.” I don’t need stuck-in-the-mud fuddy duddies or uptight types in my work or life – life is too short to worry about them. Don’t get me wrong – I honor the fact that everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but frankly, I don’t need someone telling me what is right or wrong for me or to criticize what I do when it is so positive on so many levels – and not just for me. How, you ask? Let me explain further…
Why I Do It
Here are just some of the reasons I wear a pink tiara and boa to conferences that I attend:
1. It makes people smile.
2. It starts conversations with interesting people.
3. It is easy to find me in a crowd.
4. It gets people out of their shell.
5. It makes me feel bold and in the moment.
6. It generates excitement and papparazi moments.
7. It helps me show other women that it is okay to draw attention to oneself in a fun way.
8. It helps me show other women that we don’t have to be so serious (or like men) to get taken seriously by men. (Just today, I had a number of men say “Now THAT is smart. I had no trouble finding you in a crowd.” Then we proceeded to have conversations about high tech and business.
9. It gives others permission to be silly.
10. It opens doors, literally and figuratively.
Again, not everyone likes my tiara and boa, but you know what? That’s their problem, not mine. And for every stuck-in-the-mud potential client I lose because they don’t like my getup, I get many more fantastically adventurous and bold clients who are fun to work with – not to mention new friends who are a blast to be with – so I’m not worried.
If I make 1 person frown while making 100s of people smile with my faux royalty wear, I think I’m doing okay. Don’t underestimate the power of a tiara and boa. And if you don’t like it, you can always mind your own business, right?
What do YOU do to be bold and get noticed in a crowd?
