Tag: networking

Categories
Work

Invest in You

Do you blog?

Do you have a hobby?

Have a small business that you are passionate about?

Would you love to get better and be inspired by others? I know my answer would be big YES!

I love being surrounded by like-minded people that just make you feel energetic, inspired, and think about things in such different ways.

Investing in you is important. Learning from others that have been there and had some of the same experiences is helpful. You can learn what worked for them and what didn’t and of course how to improve things for the better. Maybe they will give you their procedures and techniques, or at least give you some idea how they manage to do it all and do it so well.

This is why I love going to conferences like Problogger. It is a chance to focus on me, my work, and I believe it is an investment. It is corporate training, corporate development but for me, I am the corporation. I am the BIG business although on a much smaller scale. It is nice to think BIG even when you are not.

Me and Barry Du Bois. Yes I did say I know you from TV! @cancercouncil ‪#‎TheLivingRoom‬ @kids_business
Me and Barry Du Bois. Yes I did say I know you from TV! @cancercouncil ‪#‎TheLivingRoom‬ @kids_business

Even if you have been blogging for years and might know a bit already, there might be that one thing that you had no idea about. That one thing might be the difference on how you run your blog/business and it could be the thing that allows you to stand out from the crowd.

Attending conferences like these is also good for networking with other bloggers and creating friendships. As a blogger that is a stay at home mum to three kids now, it is nice to be taken seriously as a blogger rather than just a mum. I know I’m not earning the big bucks but you never know my time will come and that might be the case. Everyone had to start somewhere.

Investing in you as a person is always a good idea. I see that a couple of days away and the costs associated with this trip as minimal in the scheme of things. I don’t get time off as a mum. I don’t get sick leave, I have been going non-stop and think that this is a nice break that will also allow me to focus on my fourth or maybe other baby (my blog)… not sure where it would place in the scheme of things. Maybe it really was third?

It is so easy as a mother not to do things for you. If you don’t do anything for yourself you will get frustrated and annoyed. Taking the time, even if it is a day here or there is much needed.

Do you have a partner or maybe friends that don’t see the value in what you are doing? “Oh that blog, why are you doing it, it is not like you are getting paid”. Well I think they are wrong…it does not matter if you are getting paid for your efforts now. Although heaps of money would be nice and bring it on! You just don’t know where things might lead. You could be blogging away and someone might love your writing and offer you a book deal. The book might become a film and now you are famous and worth a small fortune. Yes I have used some wonderful positive daydreams about how blogging could lead you to a fab job and yes being very wealthy.

It does not have to be sudden fame and wealth, you could just be offered a wonderful job for a magazine or a website. If you were not blogging this job would never have happened, so keep going everyone out there in blogging world. Don’t give up. If it is important to you, then that is the only thing that you need to worry about. Forget about the haters and people that have no idea. Just keep on keeping on and invest in you and things will happen.

I am very lucky this year that I can attend Problogger. The reason is my wonderful mother is able to come and mind the kids. I was hoping that hubby and the kids might make it a family holiday again but that was not to be. Hubby cannot take time off work, so it is just me going again. I am just grateful that I get to go.

Only yesterday I was able to attend Kids Business’ Bloggers Brunch. They were kind enough to offer babysitting and I was very happy and appreciative of this. The babysitting allowed me to walk around and talk without a baby on my hip and to have adult conversations. It was a delightful change from my daily goings ons.

Yesterday I was up at 4am due to baby wanting to be fed. I was going to be up at 5am so thought no point going back to bed. After feeding the baby I gave him a bath (I have never bathed him so early and that was amazing I fitted it all in), changed his clothes and put him to bed until we were all ready to leave. I changed his nappy and then all kids were in the car ready to drop the twins at before school care.

Learning more about the fab brands at the Bloggers Brunch yesterday. Thanks Kids Business it was a great day out.
Learning more about the fab brands at the Bloggers Brunch yesterday. Thanks Kids Business it was a great day out.

I had to get the twins ready for before school care and drop them off as close to 7am as I could. I managed to get the girls to care at about 7.20am. So I thought that was pretty good.

So now kids were at care, the baby and I were in the car for our huge journey to Centennial Park. I enjoyed the journey aside from the couple of times that Alex decided to scream the car out! Yes that was not fun at all. Thank goodness he fell asleep soon after his screaming moments.

I had to be at the Bloggers Brunch for 10am and managed to get there with 30mins to spare. I found a place to park the car. Fed and changed the baby and then got the pram and nappy bag organised and was off to the venue.

It was great to bump into old blogging mates and to meet new ones. I also bumped into a mate’s niece… what a small world.

I must say that yesterday was a HUGE day. I ended up being up for over 14 hours, and oh did I sleep when my head hit the pillow. I am still tired from yesterday as I write this.  A BIG thank you to Steph and the team from Kids Business for a fabulous day and all the lovely brands that made it along to showcase their products.

No matter if you are earning money or not, take every opportunity that comes your way. You never know where it might lead and what you might learn. The people that might be not valuing your time you spend on your hobby/blog or passion will value it when it comes to affect them, for example when it starts earning some money. I am sure they would want to be supportive then. Or if you become famous or well known.

Do it for you.

Do what makes you feel good.

I have heard it all. “Oh that is not a job! You are not earning any money. Oh ….. You are a mother”. Yes but I do much more than just being a mummy.

Invest in you and the Rest will come. This sounds a little zen or spiritual but it is true. It is like dressing for the job that you want rather than the one you have.

Let me know what you have done as an investment in yourself? Is it a course? A conference? Or just a weekend away to have some time out? Or maybe it is a course that you have been desperate to do, learning to paint or say photography.

Whatever it is, it is your time.

Have time to yourself.

Have your space.

Do something that helps you grow that allows you to be you rather than someone’s mum during this period.

You are still you even if you have kids.

 

 

Mummy cuddles before our HUGE drive home. #bluemountains #mums #blogging @kids_business #bloogersbrunch
Mummy cuddles before our HUGE drive home. #bluemountains #mums #blogging @kids_business #bloogersbrunch
Categories
News

Problogger 2015 here I come!

I am very excited and happy. Yes a rare occurrence due to the fact that I have not done anything on my to do list (this to do list is mainly housework and organsing stuff for kids )

However I did manage to do something I have wanted to do since experiencing Problogger in 2013.

Today I managed to secure a ticket to Problogger. If you don’t know what Problogger is, It is the biggest and most amazing blogging conference in Australia.

Silly photo fun with mummy at the QT on the Gold Coast in 2013. We were there for Problogger.
Silly photo fun with mummy at the QT on the Gold Coast in 2013. We were there for Problogger.

Why I wanted to go back:

  • I loved it.
  • It was an eye opener and I had a ball!
  • Learnt so much
  • Networked and met such amazing people

So with the idea that 2015 is the year to achieve. The year to progress and get things done in a professional sense.

Yes screw the housework (although I secretly wish that while I work away, my clone would be cleaning and doing all the things I loathe to do)

I had enough in my PayPal account and that made ticket buying easy. Also I was sitting at the computer when ticket sales were announced and was able to get a ticket while some were still left, at the time of booking there was only about 230 tickets left. Last year they sold out in about 30mins to 15mins. Yes crazy isn’t it! Being online at the right time is crucial!

I phoned the hotel to book a room and that is now organised. Although still waiting on my confirmation email. I chased this up but it is due to the fact that bloggers have kept the hotel staff very busy. I wanted to make sure that I had a room at the venue as this would have made things harder. I have been assured my email should turn up tomorrow. I hope so.

In our hire car at Gold Coast Airport in 2013. This time it will be just me driving my hire car.
In our hire car at Gold Coast Airport in 2013. This time it will be just me driving my hire car.

Two things are left to sort out

  • Flights to the Gold Coast
  • Car hire

I will of course use my wonderful car hire deal from Redspot Sixt to get me from the airport to The RACV Royal Pines on the Gold Coast.

If you are a brand, company and the like, and you have anything that might suit the blog please get in touch.

I need to help pay for my trip and to help hubby not feel upset about the outlay so far. Plus The Problogger event is a perfect time to get more eyes on your products and business. We can work something out if you would like to sponsor me.

Are you going to Problogger in August? If you are I will see you there! I cannot wait. Not only will I be learning a great deal, I will be kid free for a while.

Let me know if you are going and we can meet up.

 

Categories
4 years and beyond

Bloggers who Brunch

Me with Norm and his twins - Choosi
Me with Norm and his twins – Choosi

I planned to write this post on Friday night and then I was too tired and not being able to keep my eyes open was a sign that sleep was needed. I was then going to have it all organised for Saturday, however one of my girls picked up a bug and was unwell and had a temperature. Due to this child being unwell it resulted with mummy having to have constant cuddles with her all day. This unforeseen event meant that the post was not online. So here it is the update from the bloggers brunch that has been promised.

Getting there

As you all know last Friday I attended the bloggers brunch, I took the kids with me as they had babysitting which was a great idea. It was an early start to the day and I was up at 5.30am to get ready and got the kids up at 6am. I figured out that we needed to leave at roughly 8am or earlier as I wanted to get the car washed.

The twins were good sports and got up without a fuss when I woke them. I hate waking up kids to go somewhere. It is always the way, you want to sleep in and they get up early. When you need to go somewhere you have to wake them up. I am sure this does not just happen to me.

We all had our breakfast and I was organised the night before and had all our clothes laid out so that we could just shower and get dressed. We managed to get ready and the twins were even on time to have a television show before we left the house.

All bags were packed, kids were in the car and we were off. I must say that I made both kids go to the toilet before we left and I did also. We had a long drive to the city. Although it was long, I love the trip and the adventure of going somewhere for the day.

As we were making good time, I stopped to get the car washed to make it look a bit nicer than it was. I fueled up as well and while inside paying I thought I should go to the toilet again as I felt that I needed to go, I brushed it off and thought, NO I can wait until I get there. Now readers, remember this.

Car cleaned and now we are all off to the city. As I approached the city, I was wanting to find a bathroom more and more. I know I should have gone before at the petrol station but as I was on the highway I could not just turn off the road. I had nowhere to go! I just powered on and held on. We got closer and closer to the venue and were nearly there.

During one stage I was taking deep breaths and trying not to think on what I really wanted to do, find a bathroom! I was bracing myself for the girls to then tell me that they needed to go to the toilet, but that was not to happen. Thank god for that.

During this whole episode my GPS that is run on my iPhone was draining my battery and I had very little power left. Do I hang on or risk it to get to the function or do I turn off to then find a bathroom and then get lost.  This was the dilemma.

I did know where the venue was, however I had never driven there myself and knew that there were some roads that were turn left only or maybe turn right only, and did not want to get stuck in a constant problem of being on the wrong street and just around the corner. This has happened before.

To make a long story short, I could not take it anymore. I turned off the road and then turned left, left and left again. I parked in a no parking place. Told the kids to get out of the car, and found a church that had toilets. To my great relief they were open and all of us managed to use their facilities. However during this my phone battery was on its last legs and when we managed to get back to the car, it had 1% battery power left. When I started to resume the map on the GPS it was starting to shut down. Typical and other words that are not fit to print were uttered!

Great, this is just what I needed! Oh well, I knew we were around the corner just a matter of getting on the right road and lane. I saw two ladies talking and said where we were off to and that my phone GPS had died. They told me to turn left, then right and then left and we would be there. They were right and we got there with 30 mins to spare. Thank you ladies, whoever you are, you were a lifesaver.

What was the brunch like?

Kids were successfully dropped off at the childcare that was provided by Dial an Angel, which was a great idea. It was nice to walk kid free for a bit and talk to other adults and network with other bloggers.

At first I did not know where to start. There were a lot people milling about and stalls for the brands that were showcasing their products and services at the brunch. I decided to make my way to all the stalls to get an idea of what they were offering and find out about all their products/services.

The brands at the brunch were: Kmart, Choosi, Mamee, Brauer, Medela, Naty and Optus.

I made my way to Choosi and Mamee before the welcome to all bloggers. We were then seated to listen to the talks by the guest speakers. There were three guest speakers:

  • Ingrid Poulson from Steadfast Training, spoke about resilience and being positive
  • Tracie Walker, Kmart General Manager of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability, and mum of seven year old twins.
  • Elizabeth from Fitted for Work

The talks were inspiring and made me think that more people needed to give back. Ingrid had suffered tragedy and has managed to rebuild her life, Tracie has built a great corporate career and helps others through programs at schools and overseas, and Elizabeth works at a great company that helps women with corporate attire to gain a job.

I was very taken with the Fitted for Work business. I think helping women in need to get the job is a great idea to support. Fitted for Work help women how are suffering disadvantage get work and keep it. They fit women with appropriate business wear so that women can present well at an interview, also interview coaching is part of the deal.

Since they are a non for profit business they are always looking for money, clothes and anything that you can spare. Do you have a business outfit and accessories that you are not using or don’t want anymore. Is it good quality and in need of a good home? Why not donate it to Fitted for Work.

After the talks, I mingled with other bloggers and saw the other brands, Brauer, Medela, Naty and Optus. I handed out my business cards that magically were delivered by the post man the day before the event, even though they were supposed to come the first week of August. The post man must have known I needed them. Just worked out well.

Lunch was delicious however I thought the kids would be served an appropriate meal for them but they shared what we ate. Since my kids are fussy, it was mini chocolate muffins and the like that got eaten. Mamee had a nice gift bag with their rice treats and the girls nibbled on them after the brunch at the park.

I even got inspired and shared an idea for an existing product of KMart’s. You never know it might be in the works soon and at your shop soon! If it happens will take pictures and let you know it was my idea! J  Well you never know, right?

One thing that was rather sad about the brunch was that my battery on my phone had died. I had no charger on me and of course no iPad or other device. Many stalls were running competitions that required you to take a picture and post to twitter. As I was minus technology I missed out on all this. It made me think that I need to be prepared for Problogger and have all devices charged and ready to go, have my charger with me just in case.

I am also thinking of a better bag to take to the conference at the gold coast as things got lost on the bottom of my hand bag and it was hard to get things out in a hurry. Need to be better organised for next time. What bag do you take to conferences? Do you find it hard to find things in a hurry? Do you have business card holders and if so do they come in handy? I was going to get one but have not had the chance as yet.

Three dial an angel ladies came up to me on separate occasions to say how well behaved my girls were and if we ever needed a babysitter they would love to help me out. That was great news, and they even service the Blue Mountains, so that was good to know.

As this was my first bloggers brunch it was nice to meet bloggers face to face rather than in the virtual world. It was also a bonus to be introduced to such lovely brands and have the opportunity to be considered for brand ambassador or similar.

Things I would do differently: Maybe not have a coffee before a big drive to the city, better bag to find things in, and take my iPhone charger to ensure I might be able to do more at the event.

If you went to the brunch, what were your thoughts? Did you have a good time? Have you been to events like this, and if so what are your tips to make it a successful day?

I am keen to see what the outcome of the brunch will be. If nothing arises, it was nice to be included, have a day out and have fun with my girls.

Categories
4 years and beyond

Blog Lunch

Tomorrow I am off to a blog lunch to meet some other wonderful women that also blog. It will be nice to be out to have a meal without kids and also to the hubby. Networking and meeting more people is something that I am rather looking forward to, however I must admit that I am a tad nervous. Not sure if all these people know each other already, maybe they do? Some might not so no need to worry, you cannot expect everyone to know each other. That is the whole reason to network and get out there to meet new and interesting people.

Another thing is that tomorrow is going to be rather hot so will make sure to be dressed in a nice dress to not over heat. The weather here in Katoomba was very hot well for us it was but being in Parramatta it will definitely be even hotter, so that is something to watch for.

Do you do things that you are looking forward to but in the same breath you are a little nervous. I do. I know there is nothing to worry about and at the end of the day, I will have a nice day out without kids by myself and the other most important point is that I will meet some great and interesting people. So nothing to worry about and just need to focus on having fun and getting there on time.

I am sure it will all go well and looking forward to my time out. Also while out and about might get some cotton that matches my new dress so that I can take it up (It is way too long and shorter is the way to go, trust me). With this warm weather the more dresses for summer I have the better. Have you been out by yourself to meet new people lately? How did it go? Were you nervous? Send in comments and why not continue the discussion on our twitter or facebook pages.