I attended the Create and Cultivate conference for the first time in January and I was excited for a few reasons – to escape the winter for a moment (yay!), visit a new city and attend a conference for entrepreneurial-minded creatives. To add to my excitement, Create and Cultivate had asked me to speak on a panel during the conference called “The Art of the Pitch: How to present, sell and negotiate your big ideas.”
It wasn’t just my first time at this particular conference, it was my first time visiting Dallas and although I didn’t get a chance to explore too much, the city impressed me. Dallas was more cosmopolitan than I expected. Chic people (every woman looked like a fashion blogger), great dining (visit Filament if you get the chance) and beautiful weather to boot!
The minute I walked into the venue, I knew this wasn’t going to be like any other conference I had ever attended. The decor was beautiful. There were thousands of flowers and special touches. The attendees were bright-eyed and chiiiiic AF.
I attended a few panels and it was empowering to hear the stories of some of the most successful creatives in the fashion, publishing and blogger industry. Their attempts, triumphs and insights were enlightening and encouraging.
When it was my turn to take the stage, I was nervous. My brain was void of anything useful and I couldn’t think of ONE useful thing to share. Once I got on stage and the conversation started, my brain un-paused and really smart things started coming out of my mouth. Ha! This happens before every important meeting or speaking engagement, just before I step on stage or into the room I try to rehearse in my head and I can’t remember anything …. my brain is empty!
I was amongst some pretty heavy hitting panelists so not only was I able to share what I knew with the audience, I was learning from my co-panelists – Tina Craig of Bag Snob, Lynsey Eaton of Tomboy KC, Caroline Harper Knapp of House of Harper. The hour flew by and felt more like a conversation amongst friends rather than a panel, due in part to the fact that our moderator, Lily Berg from Digital Brand Architects, was awesome and did a stellar job at steering the convo and asking follow-up questions.
After the panel, I was approached by a few ladies who thanked me for sharing my tips or who wanted to ask specific questions. I was flattered. I was really awesome to see so many women who were on a quest for more out of themselves. So many women with ful-ltime jobs embarking on creative side projects or passion projects.
Create and Cultivate was not only the most aesthetically beautiful conference I had ever attended but I left feeling invigorated. I met a ton of like-minded people.
