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Women’s HERstory Luncheon NYC

I am not sure if Mother Nature is confused but it is not Winter anymore, it is officially Spring lol. It is supposed to warm up this weekend and I hope that the warm weather is here to stay.

Last Saturday, I attended the Women’s HERstory Luncheon with one of my best friends in NY. I heard about the event from one of the featured speakers that I know and thought it would be a great event to attend.

This event was created by Elle Johnson and Ebony Cattouse-Stewart and this was the 3rd annual luncheon. I love how this event was right in the middle of Women’s History month and was created to bring women together to share their stories, network and empower each other. I find it important to get out to these event and meet other like minded women. You can’t sit behind your computer blogging, you have to get out and network. I have met so many amazing women just being present.

I always love when I can come to into the city and visit. I loved the intimate vibe of the event so it made it easier to talk with others. The venue was super cute and I just loved the atmosphere.

We started off getting settled and getting to know who was at our tables. We were able to eat lunch, mingle, do a little shopping before the program started. I loved that two Black Owned Businesses(Marie’s Halo who sells candles that smell amazing and Trade Street Jam Co who sells these vegan, low sugar jams that taste so good!) were at the event and I made sure to support them both.

The program started out with a welcome from the founders and introduction of our speakers. (I have a IG highlight on the event on my profile with a few snippets of the speakers) One of the reasons I attended this event was because of Shinese Brathwaite of BK Girls Night Out. I previously attended one of her events and we have been in contact ever since. She spoke about how she got started with her Think Pink Events which will be celebrating 5 years this year and how she is educating everyone on the culture of Brooklyn. I love how she just stepped out and had her first event in her home and it just grew from there. You can’t be afraid to take those risks because you never know the opportunities that will present themselves. Shinese also made a good point about having the right tribe around you and how they should be able to tell you the truth about yourself.

The next speaker was another reason I wanted to attend, Rana Campbell from my favorite podcast Dreams In Drive. It was great to finally meet her in person and she was so sweet and welcoming. She really gave us the tools on being successful in putting your dreams in drive and how to utilize marketing. I feel that I overlook how much marketing is an important part of what you do if it is blogging, being an influencer podcasting or an entrepreneur. I highly recommend listening to her podcast, I get inspired every time I listen.

The last speaker was Chamar Logan who warmly greeted everyone as they entered the venue. She had such about a powerful testimony about how she overcame some difficult obstacles when everyone was telling her stop and doubted her. She made it clear to live in your purpose and don’t be afraid to ask for help. She stressed the importance to have faith in something, no matter what higher power you believe in, you just need to have faith.

After our speakers finished, there was a little Q&A sessions and we were free to continue mingling and shopping. I love when events are smaller and more intimate so you have the chance to really talk with everyone and it is not so crowded and rushed.

I really enjoyed attending this event and took away so much. I walked away feeling more empowered and having more of a clear vision of my brand. I love being around strong, boss women who are not afraid to give you the tools that helped them become successful. I will definitely be attending next year and encourage you to as well.

Hope you guys have a great weekend and see you Wednesday!

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Netwerk To Networth Recap

It is just something about being in a room full of like-minded girl bosses that just motivates you to level up. This past weekend, I attended the Philly stop to the Netwerk to Networth tour.

This is the first year for this tour that is helping women connect on an authentic level and learn from each other. Netwerk to Networth was created by Personally Rachel Group and PR Girl Manifesto (which I later found out that this was two black girl bosses #blackgirlmagic).

The first day of the tour started with a happy hour. It was held at Marsh and Mane which is a Black Owned natural beauty supply store and lifestyle boutique. I was excited to be able to visit this store and even chatted with the owner for a bit. She started this business after being let go from her 9 to 5 and it seemed to work out.

I loved the atmosphere of the happy hour. It was intimate and relaxed. We had some drinks, light refreshments and even got to shop in the store! I was excited for the next day!

The next day started off with some mingling, breakfast and pictures ( I absolutely loved the selfie wall). I was excited to network with some amazing women and learn from them. I was happy that I came to the event with some of my friends because I usually go to these events by myself.

The event started off with the founders giving an introduction and thanking all of us for attending. They handed it off to the moderators who guided us through the day.

The first speaker is one the reasons why I purchased a ticket lol. Melissa Alam, creator of The Fearless Con (which I have attended and blogged about before) told us how to secure the sponsorship bag.

She gave us a lot of tips on how to be organized when pitching to companies, what your pitch deck should contain and how important it is to follow up. Your pitch or sponsorship deck (which you can make through Canva) should contain the following :

  • Cover Page
  • Your Story and Event Info
  • Audience Demographics
  • Package and Rates
  • Sponsorship Benefits
  • Contact Info

Next speaker had everyone in the room all in their feelings. We all had to stand up and find someone in the room you didn’t know and pair up with them. We had to make eye contact and repeat the affirmation to each other. I’ll admit I got a little emotional and vulnerable. Everyone felt closer and just all full of good vibes.

Delilah Dee, founder of Delilah & Company LLC and recent Philly Promotions Director of iHeart Radio reminded us about Community over Competition.

She reminded us that as women, we need to be more supportive of each other, be the cheerleader for your people and don’t withhold information that can help someone else. She stressed the importance of having people in your tribe that benefit you, support you and your aspirations and just there in your corner.

Next up was Kate Marlys of Philly PR Girl who told her story of accidental entrepreneurship.

Kate just started a PR blog and  throwing her own networking events and just followed the path that lead her to Philly PR Girl. I love how transparent Kate was about her journey and about starting a business. She stressed the importance of investing in yourself, never stop learning and everyone should have a LinkedIn profile.

The last speaker was Rakia Reynolds of Skai Blue Media who taught us about being a fan of your brand and how non verbal communication plays a big part in business.

Rakia dropped a lot of knowledge on her experience starting her business and how to be truthful and authentic. She gave us tips on defining your brand, what its purpose is and some interesting facts about certain colors to wear like yellow and blue. She also stated that everyone should have a friendtor, which is like a mentor but gives you the real, real.

After all the speakers we had some lunch, drinks and did some more networking. I made sure to get around to as many people as I could and it just felt so easy talking to everyone.

All the speakers sat down for a panel of q&a. We talked about self care, when sliding in the DM is the last resort when trying to contact someone and proper etiquette if you have to send someone a DM and so much more useful information. I took in everything that was said and will be applying it.

We had a little bit of a happy hour after the event with a DJ and more drinks. It was another opportunity to network and talk with other women in attendance.

Overall, Netwerk To Networth was amazing. I enjoyed everything, met some dope, creative women, caught up with some friends and just had a great time. The tour is still going on and I highly recommend that you attend a stop if it is near you. You can check out the site here https://www.netwerktonetworth.com/home

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The BOLD Experience

If you are not following Dayna Bolden, I don’t know what rock you have been living under but you need to go follow her ASAP. Dayna is one of the influencers that inspires me through being her authentic and true self. She inspires women everyday to do things with love, passion and style while being authentic. 

When I saw that she was hosting her first event, I knew I had to be in the building. I heard Dayna speak for the first time at BlogHer a few months ago and was truly inspired by all the gems she dropped and how welcoming she was to talk and take pictures with everyone after her panel was over. I was so excited when I secured my ticket for The Bold Experience because they went pretty fast. I couldn’t wait to network with other women and catch up with a few blogger friends. Overall, I couldn’t wait for this event!

The first thing I noticed once I walked into the venue was the decor! The attention to detail and how the space was filled was on point. It was such a fresh, bright and clean design. 

I loved that notebooks and pens were provided. I packed my notebook and had a pen handy just in case. Sometimes you don’t know if those things will be provided at some events, you want to be able to take notes and remember what was said for future reference. 

We started the day networking with each other, grabbing something to eat and taking pictures.You could also take headshots and grab some exclusive merchandise that Dayna collaborated with Mess In A Bottle (a black owned business) just for the event. 

Myself and Dayna Bolden

Before Dayna hit the stage, we heard from keynote speaker Michelle McKinney who was just everything. She is the founder of Dreams Unleashed that helps women to discover their God given dreams and helps bring them to life. I was just taking in everything that she was saying to us and I could look around the room and tell her words sinking in with everyone. Michelle gave us 5 questions to ask ourselves to really level up for 2019. 

The question that stood out to me the most was “Do I introduce myself like I’m the shit or do I downplay my achievements”? When she went deeper into it, it really made me think about how I really show up for myself. Do I present myself confidently or still act a bit stand off-ish or shy? How I present myself and talk about myself is important to my brand.

After Michelle, it was time for Dayna to hit the stage and drop some gems. She went over how she got into blogging, how it went from her side hustle to full time job, her work/life balance and so on. 

She encouraged all of us in the room to figure out our why, figure out why we want our certain goals and why we want to do it. After we determined our why, figure out our who and what. This information was extremely helpful for me as I’ve been struggling with the direction of Naturalle Drea and how to take it to the next level. 

I love how Dayna encourages us to be authentic in the world filled with social media frauds and people who front for the gram. You can be true to yourself and transparent self and still have that success. At the end of the event we had a candle lighting ceremony which symbolized that lighting another woman’s candle will never dim your own. 

When I got back to my room after the event, I opened a hand written thank you note from Dayna and I shed a few tears reading it. I just couldn’t get over that she actually wrote thank you notes to everyone but it was personalized to us. What stood out to me the most was “Living Boldly comes with intention, first it takes believing that you can then acting on it. Be Great, Be Bold and go after everything you deserve”.  I was just blown away and also the swag bag was everything lol!

I walked away from The Bold Experience feeling so much better about myself than when I walked in the door. I feel so inspired to be a better version of myself and level up. I took away so much from this event and it was just amazing. I highly recommend getting on the email list for The Bold Experience 2019. 

Let me know how you plan on leveling up for 2019. See you guys tomorrow.

naturalledrea6 Comments

Fearless Con 2018

It is something about being around some boss women who are ambitious, go getters, confident and just fearless that really inspires me. I love being in a no judgement zone where women can come together, make new connections and walk away feeling more empowered and inspired. This is what the Fearless Conference is all about.

I had planned on vlogging during the conference but after the first speaker, I wanted to live in the moment and enjoy the conference instead of worrying about catching footage on my camera and on social media. I was on social media during the conference but it felt good to just enjoy and soak up this information I was learning.

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This was the 4th year of Fearless Con and I was so excited to be in attendance this year. I last attended in 2016 and had an amazing time. Fearless Con was founded by Melissa Alam who created this conference after the frustration of not finding conferences that were geared towards diverse and creative women. The two day conference is filled with panels, workshops, happy hours, networking and so much more.

Day 1 of the conference was filled with some amazing bosses who gave us the tools to make our brands and businesses better. We heard from Christina Blacken who taught us how to shift our inner fears , Tamara Darden who taught us how to take dope pics on our phones, the founders of Soom Food who taught us about the strategies for growing a business and even our fearless leader Melissa had a workshop on web design. I really took away so much from each workshop that I attended.

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After a day filled with workshops, lunch and shopping, it was time for a fun happy hour. I met some amazing women and played this fun game called Nasty Woman. If you watched the 2016 debate, you would know the reference lol. I loved playing the game, it was just so much fun. I highly recommend this game for your next girls night.

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Day 2 was filled with the panels in this really cool space. It used to be a high school but now a community space and I just loved how they decorated it to make it so welcoming.

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The day started off with breakfast and I was obsessed with the loaded French toast from Lokal Artisan Foods Group. I had two helpings of it lol (yes it was that good)!

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The women who spoke on day 2 were so powerful, motivating and inspiring. We heard from women from all backgrounds, nationalities and professions tell us that it is an amazing time to be a woman and we can do anything.

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During the lunch break we had the chance to shop with some local vendors and take some pictures.

After the panel was another fun happy hour. I didn’t want to leave because of this gorgeous view of the city and I was having too much fun lol!

We all just talked, danced, enjoyed some drinks and food and just had a great time. It was the perfect ending to this conference.

Overall, this conference was just everything! I walked away feeling more empowered and proud to be a women. If you are ever in the Philadelphia area, I recommend attending this conference. I can’t wait for next year! See you guys Thursday!!