WIN BIG

A while ago I was having lunch with my boss and we were talking about success and getting ahead. He told me that I can't keep doing the same things and expect to get different results. Around the same time I was reading the book The Success Principles by Jack Canfield (seriously inspiring!) and thought about creating a networking group. I did a lot of networking in STL for my job and because it was easy to do in the city. I enjoyed networking and meeting new people. (I met my amazing wedding photographer at a networking event.) I missed meeting new people and making connections here in LA. It was getting old just working out and going to work. I researched networking groups in downtown LA and didn't come across any that interested me or worked with my schedule. (Wednesdays are spin class nights!) I decided to create my own group to meet my needs.

It took me a while to execute on my vision. I described my vision to my study group at work and got the feedback that it is better to have a few good quality relationships rather than a bunch of people you'll never contact. My group encouraged me to build some strong relationships and not bother with the hassle of organizing an ongoing networking group. Despite their advice, deep down inside I knew I wanted to try to start a group. One day I was walking my dogs and it hit me. Create a networking group for women in downtown LA. I am very interested in women in business and want to meet more women professionals who are focused on success. Targeting a specific group of people in a specific place seemed much more doable than just creating a networking event.

I came up with the group name WIN BIG. WIN BIG stands for Women Into Networking for Bigger Impact and Growth. WIN BIG connects women focused on success in downtown LA. The women of WIN BIG want to impact their lives, careers and businesses. I created a Facebook page, twitter account and email address. I designed a logo (very simple and was created in word, definitely room to upgrade) and started to promote the event. I was hoping to get about 30 women at the first event.

I chose a trendy Mexican restaurant as the venue for the first event. I know the manager and Joe and I patronize the venue all of the time. (It's all about who you know!). I made name-tags, sign-up sheets and name-tents for the tables at the venue. Just a few women showed up, but they ended up being the right women. One of the women who attended the event even said she was interested in quality relationships. (Maybe my study group was onto something after all!). Even though I did not meet my attendance goal, I left the event feeling happy. The group decided they would like to have an event in October and we discussed strategies to increase attendance. (More personal invites are a must!). I created this group to help other women WIN BIG, but it turns out that I won big tonight. I got some great support from colleagues and reconnected with someone from college. It might have been a small group, but it was a good group. I think it is important to have a strong foundation. WIN BIG officially started and I am looking forward to the group growing, but more importantly to building quality relationships.