Emily Page was recently featured as the CONVENTION NATION: Featured Women
Entrepreneur of the Month in the October 2017 edition. Convention Nation is a searchable web resource of conventions all over the world — making it easy to find topics of interest so you can learn, grow and network with people of like mind. If you are an attendee, event coordinator, or speaker–you will find what you’re looking for. http://conventionnation.com.
To read the accompanying article that was published in their October newsletter is below:
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Should I Really Go… I Have So Many Things To Do?
A year ago I felt like I had one million things to do – clients to find… friend’s voicemails to return.. business plans to write for next year… business books to finish reading on my bookstand… and as the time approached for the conference I bought tickets for arrived, I wondered—should I really go?
Let me tell you tell you three examples of why the answer is YES.
It was at the last Women’s Inc Magazine Summit (courtesy of Convention Nation) where two friends and I gathered together seeking opportunities to learn and grow. Each of us were about 10 years apart in age, in VERY different places in our business, with VERY different problems. We sat together as the event began wondering if we would get something out of it besides fun conversations over cocktails at the end of the nite.
My friend Teri Valentine (CEO of The Perfect Bite Co in Los Angles) has a multi-million dollar food company with products in almost every retail chain. The company was nearly 12 years old and she was courting investors who wanted to buy in. What should she do? Attorneys were giving her conflicting advice. She didn’t have any friends in the same position. Suddenly Vicki Saunders took the stage with a panel of other women shared their advice on when to accept funding and when not to. Teri and I looked at each other as we heard the answers coming from another woman up on stage.
I had purchased a 12 year old packaging and product development company (Pearl Resourcing) but was in my 2nd year running it in my first entrepreneurial adventure. I was having success in Costco and Kroger as I teetered towards the $1 million in sales mark but as we grew I was asking myself if the embarrassment and tenacity I had to undertake to break into new accounts with cold call style sales was normal or even worth it. Then Barbara Corcoran took the stage and talked about the humiliation she faced having her husband cheat and leave her—and how she had to go on selling with wild marketing tactics and sales ploys to get attention in her industry. In each story she turned her antics into something to laugh and brag about—and I felt better and more courageous about doing whatever it takes.
Lauren Bongiorno was running her single person private Diabetic Health Coaching practice for four years and making a good living doing meaningful work but was wondering what next step for her career. During a break she explained to Teri and I that she had recently been asked by Nike to be a brand ambassador on her Instagram channel. She didn’t know if it was a good thing or a band thing to begin being a very public figure. Teri and I listened and gave her advice about how to grow in visibility but stay true to her values. The visibility could help her better serve Diabetics. She got up and made the call to accept the offer in that moment.
Each one of us came to that event with a different question on our mind and found a solution we were seeking. As we listened to incredible leaders and CEO’s talk about their success and struggles (which let’s be honest were way more interesting and helpful to hear) we found the answers we needed. We each heard a different piece of advice that was applicable to us in a room of so many people.
Maybe it’s something unmagical and rational that makes conferences powerful. It could be that our brain just finds the answer to the question it’s asking. But the wonderful kismet feeling we had as we left makes me think maybe there is something special about the coming together of like-minded people. Is it the commitment to seek to learn and contribute to one another – a desire shared by both attendees and speakers – that brought out the best in us so that we got so much more than we could of, if we had stayed at home.
If there are any events you’re considering attending this year or next… in the midst of a busy schedule… may I encourage you to decide what you answers you need to find, and then take the time, and go.
Want to know what happened? … Teri decided to wait to accept outside investors but she got involved in Vicki Saunders organization Sheo as a donor to female entrepreneurs. She feels incredibly fulfilled being able to contribute. Lauren has continued to grow her public influence on her social media and she is going to put it to good use as she is publishing The Diabetic Health Journal in January of next year to help diabetics lower their A1C levels and achieve better health. Emily is running Pearl Resourcing and opening new accounts but more importantly she is speaking at women’s entrepreneurship events herself! Her next keynote is in San Diego at the Get It Started Women’s Entrepreneurship Conference November 4 (you can get tickets here): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/san-diego-womens-entrepreneurship-conference-tickets-37708409869.
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Written by Emily Page, CEO of Pearl Resourcing, an international packaging and product development company, and a public speaker committed to helping small businesses grow.
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