Every so often I start getting discouraged and generally overwhelmed at the current blueprint of my life. Why am I putting in a full day at my day job and then coming home an moonlighting until the wee morning hours? Remind me again why I spend some precious evenings and weekend days at Blogalicious meetings? I can't help but think it would be so much easier to pack it all up and just be content with a full, but simple, existence. I could garden. Or bake. Or knit. (Ok, fine. So I'll never really knit.) And then it happens. I have a great meeting with some awesome folks and they give me fabulous feedback about Blogalicious and how amazing it is and how the experience impacted their lives. Or I attend an event hosted by friends that have totally embraced and pursued their passion and are making serious waves. And then I remember. I burn the midnight oil and sacrifice down time because it's what I was meant to do. We've created something that's larger than ourselves and we owe it to our community to deliver. And I love doing it. I know it's cliche but it's true - doing what you love doesn't feel like work. Knitting on the other hand... … [Read more...] about Remembering Why I Don’t Knit
Change Agents
L’il ol’ me, impacting The Social Web
Mamalaw Media Group is being profiled as part of Wayne Sutton's 28 Days of Diversity as people of color impacting the social web. Did you see the calendar of heavy hitters? What an honor to be named! … [Read more...] about L’il ol’ me, impacting The Social Web
Unleashing My Power at the Essence Women’s Conference
I was in Manhattan for a whirlwind trip of exactly 4 hours yesterday, participating as a speaker at the Essence Women's Conference - the theme was "Unleash Your Power." I would never have imagined 15+ years ago that I would be invited by the very magazine that I admired, to serve as an expert during a jam-packed session at a conference featuring respected professionals such as Laila Ali, Judge Glenda Hatchett, Michelle Singletary and Dr. Ian Smith. The session I was asked to speak on was Blogging for Business - Blog Your Way to the Top!, a discussion with professional women wanting to learn about tools, tips and best practices for using the blogosphere to build their brands. And I was in impressive company! My fellow session speakers were Natasha Eubanks of TheYBF; Danielle Belton of The Black Snob; Emil Wilbekin of Essence.com; and Tricia Clarke-Stone of Global Grind. Tricia, Me, Danielle, Emil and Natasha The format was "speed-dating style" where each speaker sat and spoke to a round table of about 10 women for 10 minutes. The wonderfully organized Essence staff had given me some sample questions to prepare to answer - turns out I was beyond prepared! The first bell rang for us to switch tables before I knew it. The most popular questions I was asked were: How can I drive traffic to my blog and increase my readership? What opportunities can blogging present? How do I make money through blogging? How often should I post on my blog? It was so energizing to meet such a variety of smart, ambitious professional women of color (it was like Blogalicious all over again!) I really had a blast and didn't realize how much I would enjoy sharing Mamalaw's story and the valuable knowledge we've gained along the way. It was a shame that I wasn't able to attend the entire day's events, but my schedule didn't permit; I did get to sit in on two general sessions that were off the hook: the luncheon keynote by Judge Glenda Hatchett and the afternoon general session called No More Drama — How to Get What You Really Want from the Men in Your Life. Talk about energizing! Both sessions were no-holds barred real talk that engaged the audience and made you think. A big thanks to Essence for the opportunity and for the star treatment! … [Read more...] about Unleashing My Power at the Essence Women’s Conference
October is National Work and Family Month!
Did you know that? It always puzzles me how working parenthood is such a major part of our everyday lives here in the U.S., and yet the issues affecting us aren't given the attention they deserve. Nevertheless, Congress did make the effort to recognize October as a time to raise awareness among employers about the importance of offering their employees work-life programs that will ultimately enhance the effectiveness of the employee and the workplace. The Alliance for Work-Life Progress is encouraging all employees to strike a balance between work and family. There are several ways that you can do this: Talk to your managers about a flexible work arrangement. Use October as a time to try telework or condense a workweek. Join a wellness program or organize a workplace volunteer activity. It just so happens that my long-awaited part-time work schedule went into effect this week, during National Work and Family Month. I will be off on Mondays and teleworking on Fridays. Fortunately, my workplace offers its employees the option to create a schedule that works for them. However, I have many mom-friends who aren't as fortunate. In celebration of NWFM, all next week, I'll be sharing tips for working parents that have helped me achieve the elusive "work-life balance," but I'd love to hear from you! Do you have a flexible work environment? How have you changed your schedule to better accommodate your family's needs? Or are you still hesitant to take the plunge? … [Read more...] about October is National Work and Family Month!
State of the Mom Blogosphere – 9/14 Live Chat
If you're hands aren't full with laundry or work files or grocery lists tomorrow at 1PM EST, please consider joining me and 8 other mom bloggers for an online chat about the "State of the Mom Blogosphere," hosted by The Motherhood. Here's a description of the chat: Nine celebrity mom bloggers will lead a Talk on trends in the Mom Blogosphere and you don't want to miss it!! Some conversation starters: - Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare - enhancing or taking away from blogging? - The explosion of mom blogs, from niche blogs (cooking, design, DIY, health, reviews and giveaways, etc.) to hyper-local, causes to support and more - thoughts on the growth, advice for newbies and old timers alike, and the niches that are grabbing your attention. - Creativity and mom blogs - ways we're using our blogs to get creative with words, photos, video, shared projects, etc. - Mom bloggers and brands - here to stay and moving fast. Reactions? Do's and Don'ts. Advice for bloggers and brands? - Mom blogging: predictions for 2011 The TALK FORMAT: The Talk will begin right at 1:00 pm EST and will go an hour. Log into The Motherhood and go to the Talk. The Talk is all text (plus photos or YouTube clips if you'd like to layer those in). Post in the box at the top of the page or comment on anything that's posted already. Refresh the page to see the latest conversation. TWITTER: The hashtag is #TheMotherhood Would love for you to weigh-in on any or all of these topics. It's going to be an enlightening hour! … [Read more...] about State of the Mom Blogosphere – 9/14 Live Chat
