Tuesday Tweets: Blogatech Recap

I had the utmost pleasure of spending a full day at the BeBlogalicious summit, Blogatech, at the Microsoft Innovation & Policy Center (@MicrosoftIPC) in D.C. last week. I finally had the chance to meet face-to-face with women I follow on Twitter including the founder of BeBlogalicious, Stacy Ferguson (@justicefergie), Christine Celise (@christinecelise) of DiversiTech and Ananda Leeke (@anandaleeke) of Digital Sisterhood. These beautiful, intelligent women had great energy and were so supportive! Aside from the attendees, there were great speakers espousing tips and other gems about social media, blogging, consumer research, building an online platform and much more. Here are some tweets to give you a snapshot of the lessons and insights from the 2013 Blogatech summit

#Blogatech agenda

Uhhhh... @profallirich just asked us to trade cell phones with our neighbor. Hard to part with our tech. #BlogaTECH

— Blogalicious (@beblogalicious) April 18, 2013

• I think everyone freaked out when we this exercise was announced. It was interesting to see the reactions of relinquishing your phone, which turned out to be more personal than would guess.

When starting a biz begin by taking inventory of ur friends' skillset to access necessary rsvs to help you launch.@blerdology#Blogatech

— DiversiTech (@IamDtech) April 18, 2013

• Solid advice if you are thinking of launching your own product or venture. Reach out to your personal networks first and go from there. Maximize without spending money!

@geturbizmobile Thank you! I really enjoyed #BlogaTech. I always get inspired and meet great people @beblogalicious events!

— Julie Diaz-Asper (@JulieDiazAsper) April 19, 2013

• Julie's presentation was really funny. Her first point was, "Don't be boring" when using social media. Enough said.

So much useful knowledge. I look forward to more Blogalicious events and engaging conversations and continued support from the women I met. Cheers!

- IJ

P.S. Super excited that I got to meet the women behind Blerdology, kat calvin and Amanda Spann! #blerd

Sunday Roundup, Heads Up: Spring Cleaning

I am quite impressed without the amount of work I've done on this fine Sunday. I was up before eight this morning and charged ahead with some spring cleaning that I started yesterday. Aside from exercising and joining a Google Hangout for morning meeting,  I decluttered my closet, sorted clothes to donate to a women's support group and attempted to clear out my inbox. Spring cleaning isn't just offline anymore. My inbox is getting fatter by the minute and it's time for a serious trim.

I like to do a lot of follow ups and check ins with people via email but with all the contacts I've made recently, it's difficult to keep track of everyone and everything. Though I have an Contactually account, I do not use it as often as I should, nor to the best of its ability.

Change is gonna come. 

I actually get enough reminders from Contactually (@Contactually) to utilize their application to better manage my contacts and emails. Since it is synced with my email account, the process is quite seamless. Basically, if you are the type that likes to keep in contact with folks you met at a networking or a former colleagues, then consider using (and maximizing) Contactually. It's also a good tool for small business owners. It's a free service, though you can upgrade. I really like the bucket feature, which allows you to categorize your contacts. If you use Contactually, let me what you think of it!

So, what's the heads up this week? Well, it's hard to imagine that April is already halfsies but I am looking forward to my Photoshop class. It's about time I took a design class! There's a Blogalicious Tech Summit in D.C., that I should probably sign up for less I forget. I have a list of writing assignments that I am ready to dive into including working with Blacks Gone Geek. More on that in a few weeks.

But before I get ahead of myself, I must share that three weeks ago to the day, I was in the Midwest in the midst of a snowstorm; and now I'm basking in the spring sunshine and marveling at nature's beautiful blossoms. Even though the next few weeks will be hectic, it's nice to reflect on the little things; if only for a moment. Check out my lazy, cherry-blossom-free Sunday photos while I was in Kansas City a short time ago. Time flies!

A snowy Sunday in KC

w/ luck,


Ijeoma

Women Power

Hands down. Attending the Pennsylvania Conference for Women will probably be the best decision I made all week. And it's only Monday! Now that I am finally at my laptop, which I brought along with me of course, I can express what I've always understood to be true. Surrounding myself with aspirational, positive women is like a drug. Considering that I had to wake up at 5:30 this morning and still almost missed my bus, I was just hoping to help out and get free access to the conference. Well, thanks to my little sister, I did not miss my the Megabus and I have already interacted with women who have given me advice, contacts and the confidence to push forward.

Case in point, Uneeka Jay (@powermommy). Allow me to set the scene. It's after 12:30 p.m. and I'm finishing up my boxed lunch. Caesar salad wrap, string cheese, chocolate chunk cookie and an apple. She casually sits down, no big deal. Fast forward fifteen minutes and I have someone who is encouraging me to attend the Blogalicous conference next year, informing that I need to buy my domain name and listing a bunch of contacts in the DC area. I kept grinning and saw the wheels spinning ever so quickly in my head.  Now that I know there is a supportive network of bloggers, specifically women of color within reach, there's no way I am not going to take a leap forward.

I also finally got a chance to meet with Amy Blankenbiller, who is the volunteer coordinator for this conference as well as two others, Texas and Massachusetts. She has such a great energy and tends to share a novel per every question you ask. I like learning by listening, so I was all ears! She has quite the story and actually lived in the DC area for a number of years. Indeed, it is a small world.

1.5 tons of Hershey chocolates
that conference volunteers packed

Coincidentally enough, Penelope Trunk had a new blog post that resonated with me today. Two particular comments were relevant to my current transition - picking a lifestyle versus working toward a job title and not overcommitting. I've never been one for titles and whatnot. Personally, I like being in a position of influence. With or without a title, human beings are influenced by their peers. In my last job, I made it a point to be kind in order to influence my working relationships in a healthy, positive way. Being nice goes a long way. Essentially, understanding my wants and needs in my professional life will parlay into a lifestyle that is in sync with how I work and value my time. Simple, right? Right...

I have a date with FedEx Kinko's in a minute. If all goes well, I will be the owner of a set of  temporary business cards for tomorrow's conference. Later, I'm heading outside the city to have a home-cooked meal courtesy of my friend who is housing me. Thanks Marissa!

Speaking of dinner, last night at the Oceanaire was great. I smiled and laughed incessantly to the point that my facial muscles were paining me. I had a good time and the salmon was delish. Thanks Don and Len!

Sometimes I forget how gracious my network of friends, colleagues, etc are to me. Thank you cards are most certainly in the works.