This year I had the amazing opportunity to be on the Women’s Entrepreneur Panel at the first ever Canadian Women’s Social Media Conference.
Blissdom Canada was a crazy, exhausting, emotional, funny and insightful roller coaster ride. I met amazing women all across Canada who like myself had a stressful journey to arrive on the door steps of Delta Chelsea (passing striking workers too!).
Many attendees are mompreneurs who work from home. Entrusting our husbands to do the daily school routines and keep the household running seemed to be a slightly scary concept…. but necessary in order to have a life. Eric , one of the very few men at the conference made a joke on the last day of the conference: “Your husbands called and want you home. Your children are dressed in mismatching socks and have eaten cereal for dinner….”
I had an amazing room-mate at Blissdom – Lara Gallaway ( @Mombizcoach on twitter). I was slightly intimidated to share a room with her – what if she was a bitch? Miss “top 30 business women to follow on Forbes” could maybe have an ego right?.
What about me…. would I snore? Talk in my sleep or worse be annoying? Well, the worries were not necessary. We hit it off almost instantly. This like many of my other “Blissdom” fears turned out to be unfounded.
Let me explain. I was really stressed about coming to Blissdom. I had signed on to speak at the conference but began to feel like I couldn’t do it. That I would basically suck in front of 250 people and my new career would be in the toilet (like all my son’s toys).
The night I arrived at Blissdom I couldn’t sleep. Here I was in a hotel room away from my noisy family and I couldn’t sleep. F—K. 4:30 am and I think I finally dosed off. The next day I was tired. Really tired but I knew I had to keep going. There were lots of workshops to attend, lots of parties to party at. I had to buck up and tough it out.
Then I saw my friend Jen Maier ( Urban Moms) and she could tell I was not myself. It didn’t take long before I was a sobbing mess. All the stress of decisions to make about being an entrepreneur, back to back events for my business, and preparing to get to Blissdom had taken it’s toll. Jen listened. She was super supportive, especially given that she was about to speak on her own panel only minutes later.
Top Five Things I learned at Blissdom:
- Support of friends while you are setting up a business is absolutely crucial. Without people like Jen around I could easily have given up. We all experience similar problems. Find a mentor early on so you don’t feel alone.
- Competition can lead to collaboration. Lara and I have very similar businesses. I could have seen her as someone to compete with and “avoid”. Instead we looked at opportunities to work together. Also don’t dismiss “up and comers” – it will bite you in the ass later on. I will always remember and appreciate the people who thought I was worth working with in my early days (yes that is now).
- Nothing beats face to face. As much as I love twitter – I do find nothing gives me the warm and fuzzies more than being together face to face with like minded people.
- Stop focusing on road blocks. Focus on what you can do well and also focus on what motivates you. Figure out what you are passionate about in your business or you will give up.
- I have learned that being yourself is always the best choice- no matter what. Being authentic is powerful. Being what you think everyone wants you to be is draining and a time waster. Also don’t assume the worse in people – like Time Out for Mom said – “Maybe they are just having a bad day”. We write people off too quickly. We also judge a bit too quickly sometimes.
So that is my “Blissdom Experience” in a nut shell. It was one of the best things I have done all year. I will cherish my time there and will definitely be back next year. Thanks to Catherine Connors (Her Bad Mother) and Barbara Jones (Blissdom Canada) for bringing Bliss to my life . I look forward to next year.
Leigh,
I count meeting you as one of the highlights of my experience at #BlissDomCanada this year. And since there are no accidents, I’m really excited about how our meeting each other must be for a great purpose. You’re doing an amazing job and offering a much-needed networking and informational outlet for mompreneurs in the Toronto area. With any luck, I’ll get to attend one of your events soon!
Missing you already 🙂
Leigh, your talk at Blissdom was superior. It was awesome. I think everyone in the room was madly taking notes. Thanks for summing up the conference so well! You have found your calling, for sure.
Great post Leigh. Sorry I couldn’t be there to see you shine – maybe next year!
Soooooo sad I had to miss it.
So, SO glad I could be there for you! You, my friend, seriously underestimate yourself. Stand tall and proud. You are doing it!
I think you really summed up the lessons learned from the conference. Sharing, collaboration, community, and authenticity. These are the key words from BlissdomCanada.
Meeting face-to-face is so very important. It really does help in so many ways. I loved everything about BlissDom Canada. I had a fabulous time and met so many amazing women!
Leigh, if you were feeling that way during the conference, it sure didn’t come across. But you did and the beauty of a community like this is that we ALL feel that way at some point trying to figure out this wacky world of being an entrepreneur, a boss, a mom, a wife, a friend, a colleague…nobody has it all figured out and if they say they do, they’re just in denial. I enjoyed our conversations early on about blissdom and what we could do together and I’m just appreciative that you were a part of it and that you enjoyed and got something out of it. Thanks again for being you. You have a good thing going and don’t stop. Be awesome.