Based in the Washington, D.C. area, Women Grow Business editor Shonali Burke is the IABC-accredited, award-winning principal of Shonali Burke Consulting, which specializes in “integrated communication to the nth degree.” She blogs at Waxing UnLyrical, under the watchful eyes of Chuck, Suzy Q. and Lola, her three rescue dogs. Her long-suffering husband has accepted that Shonali can most often be found on Twitter.
That’s right. No special guests this month. We’re just going to let it all hang out and chat about whatever comes to mind as we discuss women entrepreneurs, the travails they face and who knows what else?
I do hope you’ll join. It’s easy: just log on to Twitter during that time and follow the #wgbiz hashtag to participate.
Have a great weekend!
Based in the Washington, D.C. area, Women Grow Business editor Shonali Burke is the IABC-accredited, award-winning principal of Shonali Burke Consulting, which specializes in “integrated communication to the nth degree.” She blogs at Waxing UnLyrical, under the watchful eyes of Chuck, Suzy Q. and Lola, her three rescue dogs. Her long-suffering husband has accepted that Shonali can most often be found on Twitter.
So much so that we asked Kathy to be our guest on the monthly #wgbiz Twitterchat last week.
Again, Kathy didn’t disappoint. We had a terrific turnout, and the seeds of several mentoring relationships were sown, thanks to tweets such as these:
WTHashtag played nice, so we were able to download the transcript of the entire #wgbiz Twitterchat with Kathy; check it out.
#sisU… and YOU
Kathy recently announced the New Sisterhood of Success Boot Camp, a half-day event that will take place on October 9. Here’s the 4-1-1, as described on the event website:
Your Strategy: We all need a group of 5 supporters in our professional life if we are going to reach our potential. Period.
Your Mission: It is our obligation as women to pass on these lessons, and help other women and girls increase their self-confidence and opportunities.
1. Understand the hard-hitting facts behind the value of women and girls in society, and the role we can play in bringing that value to the forefront.
2. Learn how to build your group of “5″ (the magic number) professional supporters through a #sisU plan.
3. Discover how to claim time in our daily lives for our #sisU plan (aka creating a little impenetrable oasis for ourselves).
4. Pay it forward to others, creating a measurable and meaningful impact while helping women and girls.
5. Learn about success factors for women and their careers, including research and solutions on balance, communication, prioritization, negotiation, and self-confidence, as taught in the award-winning Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership class at the George Washington University School of Business, Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence and featured in the Washington Post Magazine article ‘CEO of ME Inc.‘
Based in the Washington, D.C. area, Women Grow Business editor Shonali Burke is the IABC-accredited, award-winning principal of Shonali Burke Consulting, which specializes in “integrated communication to the nth degree.” She blogs at Waxing UnLyrical, under the watchful eyes of Chuck, Suzy Q. and Lola, her three rescue dogs. Her long-suffering husband has accepted that Shonali can most often be found on Twitter.
With the first-ever Women Grow Business Boot Camp successfully behind us, I wanted to make sure you were able to access the resources even if you weren’t able to make it to the boot camp (there’s always the next time, right?).
So, here goes.
You can download several of the presentations from Network Solutions’ Slideshare account, and you’ll also find a complete contact list for speakers, sponsors and supporters (look under the “Documents” section).
Melanie Spring and Patricia Frame’s “Building Blocks” presentation is available here.
Kathy Korman Frey’s keynote presentation is available here. Kathy tells me it might look a little funky if you’re not viewing it in Internet Explorer because of a bug in Slideshare, so just a heads up on that.
Stacy Yamaoka of Yayastream did a great job with the live-stream; you can view her blog post and some of the archived recordings here.
And if you’re looking for a photographer, don’t forget to check out Aaron Thompson, who took terrific photos of the boot camp, including the one pictured above.
Here are some interesting posts we’ve seen following the event that opine on it, or reference it:
We’d never have been able to pull this off had it not been for the sponsors – thank you, Network Solutions and Steptoe & Johnson – the speakers, contributors, volunteers… and everyone who supported the event, from tweeting about it, to showing up, to following the live-tweets (here’s the boot camp Twitter transcript).
Shonali Burke is editor of Women Grow Business and one of the country’s leading business communicators, who was named to PRWeek’s inaugural top “40 Under 40″ list of US-based PR professionals. She specializes in creating and implementing integrated (online and off), results-based, measurable communication programs for clients both large and small at Shonali Burke Consulting. An accredited business communicator, she is also Adjunct Faculty at Johns Hopkins University’s M.A. in Communications program and active in the local communications community as President of IABC/DC Metro. Talk to her via her blog, Waxing UnLyrical or Twitter.
(That’s Beth getting ready for the chat, by the way; thanks to our own Shashi Bellamkonda for the great photo).
Beth shared her top tips to help business owners and entrepreneurs understand how blogging can help their business. She also touched on what makes a blog post effective and how it can help tie your efforts on Facebook and Twitter together by being the “hub” of information about you and your company. A recap of the chat can be found on Beth’s blog MarketingRoadHouse.com.
During the chat, it was announced that five Network Solutions blog hosting packages were being given away, and we have winners!
We want to thank everyone who joined the conversation. And a special thanks to Beth and her “supervisor,” Little J, as well as a shout out to @newpr, @BenCookNS, @shashib for joining in the fun!
We’ll be giving you a “heads-up” on the next one coming in July, date TBD at this time.
Shonali Burke is editor of Women Grow Business and one of the country’s leading business communicators, who was named to PRWeek’s inaugural top “40 Under 40″ list of US-based PR professionals. She specializes in creating and implementing integrated (online and off), results-based, measurable communication programs for clients both large and small at Shonali Burke Consulting. An accredited business communicator, she is also Adjunct Faculty at Johns Hopkins University’s M.A. in Communications program and active in the local communications community as President of IABC/DC Metro. Talk to her via her blog, Waxing UnLyrical or Twitter.
Thinking of starting a blog? You don’t want to be “Lenny,” do you?
This will be a great resource for you; the upcoming Smallvolution Twitterchat on June 24 with Beth Schillaci, President and Founder of VillageWorks. Beth will share her learnings and expertise on how to blog effectively to market your small business.
Beth shares why she joined Network Solutions’ Smallvolution here:
Interested? Here’s what you need to do:
Log in to Twitter on June 24, from 1-2:30 pm ET, and simply follow/participate in the conversation using the #smallvolution hashtag. The easiest way is for you to participate via the dedicated chat room on Tweetchat.
Shonali Burke is editor of Women Grow Business and one of the country’s leading business communicators, who was named to PRWeek’s inaugural top “40 Under 40″ list of US-based PR professionals. She specializes in creating and implementing integrated (online and off), results-based, measurable communication programs for clients both large and small at Shonali Burke Consulting. An accredited business communicator, she is also Adjunct Faculty at Johns Hopkins University’s M.A. in Communications program and active in the local communications community as President of IABC/DC Metro. Talk to her via her blog, Waxing UnLyrical or Twitter.
from the first-ever Women Grow Business Boot Camp, sponsored by Network Solutions and Steptoe & Johnson LLP, this past weekend. Though “recovering” is probably a poor choice of word; it was anything but draining. It was energizing, fun, empowering… I could go on and on.
Even for those of us who bond easily with other women, I don’t think we can quite imagine what it’s like to be in a roomful of women – around 100 or so on Saturday – all with a common goal: to be the best that they can be at their businesses and lives; and often the two overlap.
I started the day nervous but excited; even though we’d planned for pretty much every eventuality, you know Murphy’s Law has a way of insinuating itself just when you don’t need it to.
I ended the day exhausted, emotionally overloaded and literally tingling with the electricity generated by the women I had the great fortune to encounter during the entire experience of pulling the boot camp together.
Our terrific keynote speaker, Kathy Korman Frey, put it best, I think:
“I started the day excited, but unsure – as I am before every talk I give. I ended the day thinking, ‘These are women who could change the world, and probably will.’ Let this be a lesson to all women out there about how a couple of hours, and a room full of the right people, can change your day, your week, your year, and beyond.”
Much more to come in terms of information we want to share with all of you who weren’t there – after all, you are ALL our community – but for now, you can see the photos taken by our own Social Media Swami, Shashi Bellamkonda, here. Embedded below is the great keynote Kathy gave, and you can read her blog post here.
And if you’re serious about growing your business, you should sign up for the Sisterhood of Success webinar Kathy’s teaching this Wednesday.
You’ll come away feeling your eyes have just been opened. I guarantee it.
Shonali Burke is editor of Women Grow Business and one of the country’s leading business communicators, who was named to PRWeek’s inaugural top “40 Under 40″ list of US-based PR professionals. She specializes in creating and implementing integrated (online and off), results-based, measurable communication programs for clients both large and small at Shonali Burke Consulting. An accredited business communicator, she is also Adjunct Faculty at Johns Hopkins University’s M.A. in Communications program and active in the local communications community as President of IABC/DC Metro. Talk to her via her blog, Waxing UnLyrical or Twitter.
Do watch along, and just remember that we’ll have to turn the camera off as we move from one session to another, so a reminder to stay current with the schedule. And, wherever you are, join the conversation by using #wgbiz on Twitter.
See you there!
Shonali Burke is editor of Women Grow Business and one of the country’s leading business communicators, who was named to PRWeek’s inaugural top “40 Under 40″ list of US-based PR professionals. She specializes in creating and implementing integrated (online and off), results-based, measurable communication programs for clients both large and small at Shonali Burke Consulting. An accredited business communicator, she is also Adjunct Faculty at Johns Hopkins University’s M.A. in Communications program and active in the local communications community as President of IABC/DC Metro. Talk to her via her blog, Waxing UnLyrical or Twitter.
Excited about tomorrow’s Women Grow Business Boot Camp? I know I am!
If you’re attending in person, just a few things to remember:
Getting there
As you no doubt know, parking in downtown DC is dearer than love and fresh air (well, dearer than fresh air, at least). Your best bet in getting to the event is to take Metro’s Red Line. Exit at the Dupont Circle stop (take the South exit, i.e. Dupont Circle, not Q Street). The offices of Steptoe & Johnson (1330 Connecticut Ave. NW), our wonderful hosts & sponsor, are less than a block away. If you’re not familiar with DC’s Metro system, please check out its site, maps, etc., ahead of time.
Security
… in the building is TIGHT, so please prepare accordingly. While the event itself will kick off at 9:30 a.m., registration, breakfast and networking will start at 8:30 a.m., so do try to get there as early as you can. If you don’t arrive by 9:20 a.m., we may not be able to get you into the event and have to release your seat to someone else… so don’t let that happen (though I’m sure those on the wait list will feel differently!).
Wifi et al
We expect to have wifi for at least part of the event, though we’re trying to ensure we have it throughout. If you plan to live-tweet, the hashtag to use is #wgbiz. Check out all the speakers’ Twitter handles here.
Say cheese!
Bring your cameras, Flips, etc. – we’d love to see all your photos/videos from the event! Feel like doing a follow-up blog post? We’d love it! Just let me know when you do by tweeting me or emailing me so that we can make sure to link to your site(s) – or feature your post(s) on Women Grow Business.
On Foursquare?
Let’s try to get the swarm badge! When you arrive, look for “Women Grow Business Boot Camp” (I’ll set this up on Foursquare early in the day) – and then check in. More on Foursquare’s swarm badge here.
Can’t make it/not in the area?
We have live-streaming! Here’s the video player; log on shortly before 9:30 a.m., and follow our adventures. Since we’ll have only one camera, we won’t be able to capture the entire event, but you’ll at least get a taste of the awesomeness (is that a word?) that I know will permeate the atmosphere. And we may go offline as we move from one session to another, so stay current with the schedule.
Shonali Burke is editor of Women Grow Business and one of the country’s leading business communicators, who was named to PRWeek’s inaugural top “40 Under 40″ list of US-based PR professionals. She specializes in creating and implementing integrated (online and off), results-based, measurable communication programs for clients both large and small at Shonali Burke Consulting. An accredited business communicator, she is also Adjunct Faculty at Johns Hopkins University’s M.A. in Communications program and active in the local communications community as President of IABC/DC Metro. Talk to her via her blog, Waxing UnLyrical or Twitter.
This blog community, which is so wonderfully supported by Network Solutions, is amazing. Look at the women who volunteer their time to write for it. Look at the people who support and engage with us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Amplify. At our first #wgbiz Happy Hour, many of us got to meet IRL for the first time – and liked what we saw offline – and that was pulled together again, by volunteers.
From the speakers, to the volunteers, to the photography which is being donated by Aaron Thompson Photography (and possibly live-streaming, but I’ll tell you about that when it’s confirmed) … we’ve literally bootstrapped this sold-out boot camp (and we have a wait list to boot!) on the backs of our community.
To all of you – thank you so very, very much.
And to you, who’ve stumbled upon this blog for the first time (because I know you’re out there), why not join us?
The easiest way to get involved is to write for us on your experiences and learnings as a woman entrepreneur in a wide range of fields (check out the diverse categories we publish posts in) … and if you enjoy it, maybe you’ll join the ever-growing team of dynamic contributors to this village, er, blog. Interested? Please let me know!
After all, it really does take a village, doesn’t it?
Shonali Burke is editor of Women Grow Business and one of the country’s leading business communicators, who was named to PRWeek’s inaugural top “40 Under 40″ list of US-based PR professionals. She specializes in creating and implementing integrated (online and off), results-based, measurable communication programs for clients both large and small at Shonali Burke Consulting. An accredited business communicator, she is also Adjunct Faculty at Johns Hopkins University’s M.A. in Communications program and active in the local communications community as President of IABC/DC Metro. Talk to her via her blog, Waxing UnLyrical or Twitter.
Based in the Washington, D.C. area, Women Grow Business editor Shonali Burke is the IABC-accredited, award-winning principal of Shonali Burke Consulting, which specializes in “integrated communication to the nth degree.” She blogs at Waxing UnLyrical, under the watchful eyes of Chuck, Suzy Q. and Lola, her three rescue dogs. Her long-suffering husband has accepted that Shonali can most often be found on Twitter.
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