19: From Overwhelmed to Intentional: Planning Events That Work with Heather Black
What if your next event didn’t have to feel overwhelming? What if it could actually be aligned, intentional—and even profitable?
Heather Black is here to show you how.
She’s the founder of Phoenix Collaborations and has spent 25 years in the event world, helping solopreneurs, small businesses, and nonprofits turn events and speaking gigs into meaningful, money-making opportunities.
In this episode, Heather shares her signature S.O.P. method for event planning, breaks down what it really takes to host events that work, and gives practical advice for those of us who are already feeling maxed out. If you’ve ever wanted to share your message on a bigger stage—but the logistics have held you back—this is your starting point.
From Chaos to Clarity
Heather knows how easy it is to get lost in the weeds of event planning. With so many moving parts, it's no wonder people give up before they even start. But she believes events don’t have to be chaotic. With a clear strategy and a plan that fits your goals, events can become a major part of your business growth.
“Event planning is easy if you give yourself the right runway. But if you try to take a Boeing 747 off on a runway for a Cessna 180, it will not be pretty.”
Try this: Map out what a successful event looks like for you—what would you want people to walk away with?
Bonus idea: Write down your biggest fear about hosting or speaking. Then write a plan to work around it.
The S.O.P. Method
Heather’s signature approach helps mission-driven entrepreneurs move from idea to action using three key steps:
- Strategic – Align the event with your goals and create a clear plan.
- Organized – Use checklists and timelines so you know exactly what to do and when.
- Profitable – Make sure it’s actually worth your time and energy by tracking expenses and revenue.
Try this: Think of your next event idea. What would make it feel more doable?
Bonus idea: Break it into phases—planning, promotion, delivery—and focus on just one at a time.
The Power of 1:Many
Whether it’s hosting your own event or speaking on someone else’s stage, Heather is a big believer in the power of connecting with many people at once. It’s a visibility tool, a trust-builder, and a major income generator when done well.
“When it comes to being a speaker, I kind of break the speaking engagement down into three phases: the spark phase, the flame phase, and the ember phase.”
Try this: Make a list of 3 topics you’d love to speak about. These can turn into workshops, talks, or even content for an event.
Bonus idea: Reach out to one podcast, community, or group you’d love to speak to. Just start the conversation.
Why Events (Still) Matter
In a world where we’re all glued to screens, events offer something different—connection, presence, and real-time transformation. But it doesn’t have to be fancy. Heather reminds us that even small, focused gatherings can make a huge impact.
“Just be your authentic, fun self, whatever that looks like. Don’t get in that box that says we have to do it this way.”
Try this: Think small. What’s one micro-event you could host—online or off?
Bonus idea: Invite 3–5 people to a mini workshop or Q&A. Keep it simple, and focus on connection.
Quick Recap:
- Events don’t have to be overwhelming when they’re aligned with your goals.
- Strategy, organization, and profitability are the keys to making events work.
- The power of 1:Many helps you expand your reach without burning out.
- Small, focused events can have a big impact.
- A clear plan beats a big production every time.
- You don’t need to do it all—you just need to do what matters.
Ready to Bring Your Event Idea to Life?
Heather’s story is a reminder that events and speaking don’t have to feel stressful or out of reach. With the right support, they can be the thing that unlocks the next level of your business.
If you’re ready to get clear, organized, and actually follow through on that event or speaking idea—let’s talk.
Book a free strategy session at TheStandoutCreatives.com.
We’ll figure out where to start and how to make it feel like you.
Transcript
When you realize you don't have to know everything.
Speaker A:And it doesn't matter whether you believe in the universe or the God or whatever your beliefs are, it doesn't matter.
Speaker A:Whatever you fill in your heart that you're supposed to do, you don't have to have the whole blueprint to do it.
Speaker A:Just take the first step, and then from there, you'll see what the second step is and the third step.
Speaker A:And that's how you achieve big goals.
Speaker A:That's how you start your own business.
Speaker A:That's how you write books.
Speaker A:That's how you do anything that.
Speaker A:That how you run marathons.
Speaker A:Any journey of a thousand steps starts with the first one.
Speaker A:So just take the first step.
Speaker B:Welcome to the Standout Creatives, where making money and creating meaningful work go hand in hand.
Speaker B:You're already passionate about what you create.
Speaker B:Now let's turn that passion into a standout business.
Speaker A:Marketing.
Speaker B:Your work doesn't have to be overwhelming.
Speaker B:It can actually amplify your creativity.
Speaker B:I'm your guide, Kevin Chung, and this podcast is your roadmap to creative business success.
Speaker B:I'll show you how to turn your unique talents into a business that truly represents who you are.
Speaker B:Let's get started.
Speaker B:What if your next event didn't have to feel so overwhelming?
Speaker B:What if it could actually be clear, intentional, and even profitable?
Speaker B:That's what Heather Black is all about.
Speaker B:She's the founder of Phoenix Collaborations, and she's been in the event game for over 25 years, helping solopreneurs and small business owners take their ideas and turn them into experiences that actually work.
Speaker B:In this episode, we talk about what it really takes to pull off an event or speaking gig that moves the needle.
Speaker B:If you've got a message to share but you're already maxed out on time, this one's for you.
Speaker B:Now, onto the episode.
Speaker B:Welcome to another episode of the Standout Creatives.
Speaker B:Today I'm on Heather Black.
Speaker B:Heather is the driving force behind Phoenix Collaborations, where she helps solopreneurs, small businesses, and non profits turn events and speaking gigs into serious income and impact.
Speaker B:With 25 years of event planning experience, she's a master at cutting through the chaos, crafting profitable strategies, and making sure every event and speaking opportunity actually moves the needle.
Speaker B:Heather, that's a really awesome thing that you're doing.
Speaker B:Can you tell us a little bit how you got into the work you're doing and some of the stuff that led up to it?
Speaker A:Yeah, so I kind of stumbled into the career of event planning.
Speaker A:I actually graduated with a degree in public relations.
Speaker A:Had never heard of event planning or meeting planner jobs and just kind of stumbled into it by accident and kind of found my, my gift is organizing all of those details and making sure that all the logistics in the back of the back of the house kind of situation is handled.
Speaker A:And started my own business about two years ago just because I was looking to make a bigger impact and help more people and get out of the 9 to 5 grind.
Speaker A:Looking for some more time and money freedom like most people that start their own businesses.
Speaker A:And so over the course of the last two years, one of the things that I have found and is that what a lot of solopreneurs, small businesses and nonprofits are missing when they start using events and speaking to grow their businesses is they're missing a strategy behind that.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:They're just like, okay, I'm just going to do an event.
Speaker A:And they don't have any strategy of how it aligns with their goals or what they're doing or their why or any sort of long term plans for it.
Speaker A:And they're not really organized, they're just figuring it out as they go and then they are really not looking at the numbers and so they're not profitable.
Speaker A:So I kind of created a signature process that helps them get strategic, organized and profitable.
Speaker A:So we kind of put all those pieces into place so that they can be successful.
Speaker A:It is moving the needle and they know, they don't feel overwhelmed or chaotic with what they're doing.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:What did you do before when you were like growing up?
Speaker B:Did you have any inkling of this being a potential possibility?
Speaker A:No, not an inkling.
Speaker A:Like when I was a kid, I thought I was going to be a lawyer.
Speaker A:And then the, that was like way too much school.
Speaker A:And then I thought I would be a child psychologist.
Speaker A:And then I was like, well, I would probably end up beating somebody up.
Speaker A:So that's probably not a good.
Speaker A:Very much an empath and very sympathetic.
Speaker A:And so I was like, that's probably not going to be good.
Speaker A:And it's a lot of school.
Speaker A:And so I ended up in public relations.
Speaker A:You know, like, like a lot of people, I changed my, my degree for or five times and ended up in public relations.
Speaker A:And I loved it, right.
Speaker A:And had no, had never heard of meetings planners, event planners, coordinators or any of that.
Speaker A:And so when I landed a job in a communications department in a nonprofit, I shared an office with a meeting planner.
Speaker A:And that was my first exposure to that as a career.
Speaker A:And when she left, because we had shared an office, people Thought I knew what she did.
Speaker A:And so they're like, hey, can you.
Speaker A:Can you help us fill in?
Speaker A:And I was like, sure.
Speaker A:You know, first job out of college, you're not going to tell the boss no.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And so I just kind of fumbled along and figured it out and found that it was really something I was interested in.
Speaker A:Then I got married and moved and had to find a new job.
Speaker A:And I found a job that kind of combined both.
Speaker A:It was a little bit of a marketing as a little bit of public relations, and it was a little bit of event planning.
Speaker A:And so I was like, okay, I'll try this some more.
Speaker A:And ended up being a lot of event planning, a lot more meeting planning than I expected as the role.
Speaker A:And that worked out because I just really love that piece of it.
Speaker B:So what made you choose public relations?
Speaker A:Public relations.
Speaker A:So I had gone into advertising, and it was a very cutthroat program.
Speaker A:It was very competitive and very difficult.
Speaker A:And so I was like, I don't really think that this is for me.
Speaker A:I'm not just.
Speaker A:I'm not going to step on other people to get to the top.
Speaker A:And so aligning with that very closely was marketing and public relations.
Speaker A:And so I just kind of shifted over into that program, out of the advertising program.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:And I love to write.
Speaker A:I'm very creative.
Speaker A:I love to write.
Speaker A:And creating public relations campaigns can be a lot of fun, and there's a lot of writing involved.
Speaker A:So I just kind of honed in, leaned into those skills and went in that direction.
Speaker B:Can you talk about not knowing how to do event planning and being just tossed into it?
Speaker B:Like, what were some of the tasks that you had to do?
Speaker B:What were some of the mistakes?
Speaker B:Would you learn?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So, like, I started my job on a Monday in my.
Speaker A:And when I landed the job, that was really a lot of event planning.
Speaker A:And it wasn't just filling in for somebody was my job.
Speaker A:And we had an event out of town Friday, Saturday, Sunday.
Speaker A:And so that weekend, and then the next weekend there was another one.
Speaker A:And so my boss was like, I'm gonna go with you to the first one, and then the next one, you're on your own.
Speaker A:And I was like, what?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:I was like, wow, okay, we're gonna just throw me into the deep end.
Speaker A:And a lot of times that's really the best way to learn, but it can also be very costly.
Speaker A:And so in those cases, most of the work was already done.
Speaker A:It was just a matter of showing up and making sure that things happen the way they were supposed to happen.
Speaker A:But the next ones, you know, I was in charge of making sure this stuff happened.
Speaker A:And there are things you don't know.
Speaker A:Like, one of the biggest mistakes that I made was when I was setting, and this is why I'm so passionate about budgets, because I've made serious mistakes with budgets is I didn't know when I was picking out the menu.
Speaker A:When you look on hotel venue Menus, you see $30 for breakfast, plus plus.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:I didn't know what the plus plus was and I didn't ask.
Speaker A:And so.
Speaker A:So my $30 breakfast became like a $39 person per breakfast.
Speaker A:And I kind of worked the budget on that event because I didn't know that the plus plus was tax, gratuity, service charge.
Speaker A:And it equals about, you know, in some cases, 25 to 30%.
Speaker A:I've even seen some that up to 40%.
Speaker A:So learning without knowing, because you don't know what you don't know.
Speaker A:And that can be very, very dangerous, particularly when you're talking about things that can cost you a lot of money.
Speaker A:So, you know, I've made huge typos on ginormous signs before, and I approved the proof and just missed it.
Speaker A:You know, like, there.
Speaker A:There is no.
Speaker A:There's no event that I have ever done that was perfect.
Speaker A:And I always tell people, if I ever have a perfect event, it's time for me to retire every single it.
Speaker A:That's just the way it is.
Speaker A:Nothing is ever going to go perfect.
Speaker A:It's never going to be flawless.
Speaker A:The key is to plan in such a way that when whatever happens, that is the unexpected, you can deal with that.
Speaker A:And you're not trying to deal with how is my room supposed to be reset?
Speaker A:What are my menus?
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:You're not planning the meeting on site.
Speaker A:You're just dealing with what didn't go the way it was supposed to.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I think regardless of what event it is, there's always an uncertain element to it because there's so many moving parts to throwing an event.
Speaker B:So any part of that could go wrong.
Speaker B:And it's not.
Speaker B:It might not even necessarily be your fault.
Speaker B:It could be somebody else's fault or, you know, there's just so many things that that could potentially happen.
Speaker A:So many things that can happen.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:And the thing that is exciting and scary about events is that you are not in full control.
Speaker A:You do not have full control over the weather.
Speaker A:You do not have full control over the staff that you have to work with.
Speaker A:You don't have full control over Your speakers.
Speaker A:Like there are a lot of things that are just out of your control.
Speaker A:And when you, those pieces that you don't have control of, that's where the unexpected is going to happen.
Speaker A:So you have to control the things that you can control.
Speaker A:What.
Speaker A:Which is making sure that you've given clear instructions, that you've communicated what needs to be done and when it needs to be done so that when the unexpected happens, it doesn't send the whole event off the rails.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I think the best thing we can do is be prepared and deal with whatever happens as it happens.
Speaker B:Because obviously nothing is going to go exactly the way that you plan it.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker A:One of the things I've learned doing this is I have what I call the bar method.
Speaker A:When things don't go according to plan and it is not, I go to the bar and get a drink, I breathe, I assess, and then I react.
Speaker A:Because a lot of times what happens when things don't go according to plan, and this is great even in life is we just tend to react right.
Speaker A:And it's really important that you just take a moment and pause and just take a breath and be like, okay, how bad is this?
Speaker A:Who do I need to call?
Speaker A:What do I need to do?
Speaker A:And then you can react from a place of calm and a place with a plan.
Speaker A:So anytime things are going off the rails, just use the bar method.
Speaker A:Unless somebody's having a heart attack, then just call 911, you know, like a medical emergency or real emergency.
Speaker A:Don't do that.
Speaker A:But you know, in most cases that's not the case.
Speaker A:And you can just take a moment and breathe.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:There's an interesting story that Questlove talks about in his book Creative Quest where he's at a concert and the next guest is not there yet.
Speaker B:So they like, oh my gosh, what am I supposed to do?
Speaker B:So when he said he's, he's like, stop, think about it and what can I do with the tools that I have at this moment?
Speaker B:So he just brought on somebody else that he knew was already in the crowd to fill in some space.
Speaker B:So you can always assess the moment and figure out the best thing to do instead of panicking, which is oftentimes the thing that is the worst thing.
Speaker A:You can do, that is oftentimes the worst thing you can do because you're not going to make a good decision.
Speaker A:And, um, those knee jerk reactions usually will bite you in the behind later on down the road.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:So just take a couple, like a breath or two.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Something will come to you and something.
Speaker A:Will come to you.
Speaker A:Yeah, just, just center yourself, take a moment to pause and let your brain clear out the adrenaline that just brushed through your body and then you'll be able to react from a good place.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's like any, like you said, like any situation, especially things that make you angry or frustrated, that's I think, the best time to just take a moment and just assess everything.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker B:Can you talk about the moment where you decided that you wanted to, to leave your 9 to 5 and create a business?
Speaker B:What was, what was the spark or I guess leading up to this moment and then what was the actual spark of it?
Speaker A:Yeah, that's a great question.
Speaker A:In fact, I've kind of posted a video on my social media a little bit about that today, so.
Speaker A:So I'm a very heart centered, spiritual Jesus girl.
Speaker A:I call myself a Jesus girl.
Speaker A: And in: Speaker A:And so at that point, God kind of started planting the little seed that I was going to start my own business.
Speaker A:And I was like, yeah, no, I don't think so.
Speaker A:I think you have me confused with a woman in Minnesota.
Speaker A:But thank you sharing the idea.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A: d so fast forward to April of: Speaker A:And it was still back there.
Speaker A:I had still thought about it, I had still looked at it, but I was still like, no, that's not for me.
Speaker A:That's not for me.
Speaker A:And he literally put a pigeon in the road.
Speaker A:Like, literally a pigeon that.
Speaker A:He told me to go get out of the road.
Speaker A:And so I'm going to get this pigeon out of the road.
Speaker A:Seriously, no box.
Speaker A:No, I'm just walking to get this like, I'm crazy person, right?
Speaker A:What are you doing?
Speaker A:And I'm like, what am I supposed to do with this pigeon?
Speaker A:Like, I don't have.
Speaker A:What am I going to do with this pigeon?
Speaker A:He's just get the pigeon out of the road.
Speaker A:And so when I get to the pigeon and I still don't know what I'm going to do with this pigeon.
Speaker A:But I'm like, okay, I'm going to get it out of the road and we'll go from there.
Speaker A:And when I touched the pigeon, the pigeon flew away.
Speaker A:It just flew away.
Speaker A:And I was like, what the heck just happened?
Speaker A:And.
Speaker A:And so he was like, you don't have to know all the steps, you just have to take the first step.
Speaker A:And I said, you mean like with this business?
Speaker A:And he was like, exactly like this business.
Speaker A:And so I was like, okay.
Speaker A:So at that point we started getting serious about what was that going to look like and how was I going to leave full time employment and, you know, focus on this and do these things.
Speaker A:And it still took another year, almost a year and a half before I was actually able to leave full time employment and go to work part time and get serious about launching the business.
Speaker A:But at that moment, when you realize that this is what you're supposed to do, you're going to figure out a way to do it.
Speaker A:And when you realize you don't have to know everything and it doesn't matter whether you believe in the universe or the God or whatever your beliefs are, it doesn't matter.
Speaker A:Whatever you fill in your heart you're supposed to do, you don't have to have the whole blueprint to do it.
Speaker A:Just take the first step and then from there you'll see what the second step is and the third step.
Speaker A:And that's how you achieve big goals.
Speaker A:That's how you start your own business, how you write books, that's how you do anything that, how you run marathons.
Speaker A:Any journey of a thousand steps starts with the first one.
Speaker A:So just take the first step.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's advice that you hear so often.
Speaker B:You're like, until it's your turn to do it.
Speaker A:Right, right.
Speaker A:And it really is easy for, it's easy for me, you know, to sit here and say that, but it really is what you have to do.
Speaker A:You have to get out of your comfort zone because that's where growth happens.
Speaker A:And I don't like it any more than anybody else does.
Speaker A:But if you're going to fulfill your biggest goals, if you're going to achieve your biggest dreams, you have to get out of the comfort zone.
Speaker A:You're going to have to do things that are uncomfortable.
Speaker A:And the best way to do that is to just take, take a baby step today, take another baby step tomorrow, and just keep.
Speaker A:And those baby steps will, they'll add up.
Speaker B:So what was the actual day that you, you left your job and what, what did you have planned out?
Speaker B:Because I think you probably had a plan when you were leaving and then how you're gonna start.
Speaker A:Kevin thinks I had a plan.
Speaker A: No, I mean, so In July of: Speaker A: th of: Speaker A:And I went full time in my business.
Speaker A:And at the time, my plan was I had a few clients, or actually I had one client and then I got the second client right after I left them the full time employment or part time employment.
Speaker A:And the plan was, you know, I'm just gonna land these little clients and they're all gonna send me referrals and this is just gonna be great.
Speaker A:And within a year I'm gonna have my full time income replaced.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:That was my plan.
Speaker A:What happened was I did get a few more clients and then they went on their way.
Speaker A:And some people have some referrals and some didn't.
Speaker A:And I realized I really needed to do more marketing and networking if I was going to get myself out there.
Speaker A:And I really had to start getting uncomfortable.
Speaker A:And the plan is still ever growing and changing.
Speaker A:You know, last year in October was when I really realized that the people I was working with that the, the gap that they had was being strategic, organized and profitable.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:So I've only been working with that model for about, well, less than six months and really honing in that, that's what I help people with.
Speaker A:That's where they, I need to fill in the gap.
Speaker A:Because they can do all the work themselves, right?
Speaker A:If they have somebody that helps them and tells them and you know, guides their hand, helps them figure out what their contracts even need to say and what they even need to think about.
Speaker A:But what they really need is somebody to help them figure out what event I should even be having right now.
Speaker A:Because so many people are starting too big and they can't fill that event and it's costing them money or people are too afraid to even start because they don't know where, right?
Speaker A:And so I can come in and help them figure all of that out and help them do it in a way that is financially and emotionally and mentally good for them and their business.
Speaker B:Did you start the event and speaking at the same time or did you pick one after the other?
Speaker A:No, I kind of started working.
Speaker A:My very first client was a motivational or.
Speaker A:Well, he still is a motivational speaker and still is a client.
Speaker A:So my very first client was a speaker.
Speaker A:And I always wanted that to be part of my journey because I have sat in the seat of the meeting planner and I know what is a good partner for a meeting planner.
Speaker A:I know what they're looking for.
Speaker A:I know how to help speakers be the person that they're going to call right when they need a speaker on the Fly.
Speaker A:So I really wanted to use that skill set and help other people understand what they need to do to get on those stages.
Speaker A:A lot has shifted since COVID and it used to be you would go online and you would find lots of conferences that were accepting proposals, and you would fill it out and cross your fingers and hope and that you would get the, you know, the gig.
Speaker A:And that has.
Speaker A:Has changed.
Speaker A:It's really more now about working your network, being a good partner, being a valuable resource to those meeting planners so that when they're calling, you're actually providing value to them before you're even on that stage.
Speaker A:So I love being in that seat where I can share my knowledge and experience from being on the other side of the table and help people get on those stages.
Speaker A:So they were both hand.
Speaker A:They both go hand in hand.
Speaker A:And for most speakers, one of my recommendations, you need to have your own stages anyway, because you need to be in control of who's on the stage and what the message is, and you're in control of who's in the audience.
Speaker A:So they really do go hand in hand.
Speaker B:That's a perfect model where you can help people on both ends, because oftentimes it's one or the other.
Speaker B:And I think if you do both, you're leveraging everything.
Speaker B:You're leveraging both your ability to speak and your ability to bring people together.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:Can you talk about getting your first client or handful of first clients and how you helped them in the beginning and how that led to referrals?
Speaker A:I guess, yeah.
Speaker A:So my very first client, oddly enough, was a speaker that I met at a conference that I helped organize.
Speaker A:And he inspired me to really take the plunge and do the thing.
Speaker A:His talk was so power about getting up out of the seat and just doing the thing.
Speaker A:Just do it.
Speaker A:Just stop thinking about it.
Speaker A:Stop.
Speaker A:Just do it.
Speaker A:And I was like, okay.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker A:And so I really felt like in that moment that that was, like, the push.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:That I needed.
Speaker A:And so I went up to him after the conference and introduced myself.
Speaker A:I said, I just want you to know that your.
Speaker A:Your talk really has changed my life, and this is what's going to happen now because of you.
Speaker A:And so he was like, really?
Speaker A:Oh, my God, that's so amazing.
Speaker A:Thank you.
Speaker A:And then when I.
Speaker A:He does a lot of.
Speaker A:At the time, he did a lot of things here in Las Vegas, and he's not.
Speaker A:He doesn't live here, but he did a lot of events here.
Speaker A:And so when I finally got my business launched, I just reached out to him, I was like, hey, you remember meeting in April?
Speaker A:I just want to let you know this is really happening.
Speaker A:If you ever need any help with events in Vegas, you know, let me know.
Speaker A:And so he emailed back, oh, I'm a one man band, I got it all covered, blah, blah.
Speaker A:And I was like, oh, okay, well, that's not unfortunate, you know, right?
Speaker A:Like, oh, shoot.
Speaker A:And so then about two weeks later, he emailed me back and he was like, you know, I've been thinking about it and I think there are some things that we could work on together.
Speaker A:So let's have a call.
Speaker A:And so he literally.
Speaker A:I booked him the very first day I was officially launched as a business.
Speaker A:And then from there they were just.
Speaker A:I just continued to do outreach and I continued to work my network and got some other clients.
Speaker A:And here we are today.
Speaker B:I think one of the things that a lot of us are afraid of is networking.
Speaker B:So can you talk about how to best approach the idea of networking?
Speaker B:I know networking is such a icky term for some people, so I think it's more about relationship building.
Speaker B:I think we should probably just reframe it.
Speaker A:No, I agree with you, Kevin.
Speaker A:I think networking is very old school and I think that that word needs to be changed and we need to call it something different.
Speaker A:And I do.
Speaker A:I dread networking.
Speaker A:I'm an introvert.
Speaker A:And so it just takes all my energy to do the networking calls sometimes.
Speaker A:And it's like I really have to work myself up to it.
Speaker A:But I think that part of it is just a mindset thing that if you go into it with the mindset of, I'm gonna meet some phenomenal people today and maybe we can work together and maybe we can't, but maybe we can help each other in some way as opposed to, I'm going into this to get a client.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:Because you're probably not going to get a client just from one networking call.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:Because it really is about building relationships and building a referral base and finding people to add to your network that are going to support you and cheer you on, regardless of whether they're a client or referral or just, hey, I love what you do and I'm cheering for you.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:And so it's really about just changing that mindset of going into it.
Speaker A:What can I provide a value to the people that are in this room today as opposed to what am I going to get out of it?
Speaker A:I'm not here to get a client.
Speaker A:I'm here to provide value and showcase my personality and Who I am.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:The funny thing is that we met in a networking group, Laura Livingston.
Speaker B:And it's.
Speaker B:I think the best thing to do is like, find the right group of people because she's built something very powerful and I think just the people that attend.
Speaker B:So you have to create the setting, just like when you're doing events, right.
Speaker B:Create the setting where people who want to be there are there and connecting in a way that makes sense to them instead of, you know, just throwing a bunch of people together and hoping something happens.
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:And there's.
Speaker A:There are.
Speaker A:I've been in a lot of networking groups that were the wrong room for me, and you just don't go back to those.
Speaker A:And so you, you might spend some time, particularly when you're first getting started, putting your head in some rooms that just aren't the right fit.
Speaker A:But you learn as you go which rooms you need to be in, where are your people, which rooms feel good.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Because it really is about the host and what they've cultivated and the people that are in the room that bring the energy and make it and a successful or a. Oh, I really didn't like the way that felt, you know, like, I've been to a couple BNI events, you know, I've been to a couple of those type of referral, not even just bni, but to a couple of those referral type networking events.
Speaker A:That is not the place for me.
Speaker A:That is not.
Speaker A:Those are very transactional and that is, I'm not about that.
Speaker A:So those aren't the right rooms for me.
Speaker A:However, for a real estate agent or someone who does, you know, cleaning of buildings and cleaning of houses, that might be the right room for them.
Speaker A:So you really have to just kind of check out some things, go in, put a smile on your face, bring your A game if you can, and showcase who you are and see if it's the right room for you.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Having the right mindset and then knowing whether or not it's a right fit are both like, very important because it could, you could have the right mindset and it's still not a good fit, or it could be a really good fit.
Speaker B:But if you don't have the right mindset, it's also not gonna work.
Speaker A:So it's just not gonna work.
Speaker B:You have to be fully prepared in networking, whatever we wanna call them now spaces, and just like be fully aware of what you're trying to accomplish, right?
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:And don't, don't worry if you don't have your 30 second commercial or your elevator pitch or whatever they call it.
Speaker A:If you don't have that nailed down, don't worry.
Speaker A:You know, one of the things I wish somebody had told me earlier in when I started my business was to how important networking was going to be and that I had started earlier.
Speaker A:I wish that's something that I had known because it really takes time to.
Speaker A:I mean, unless you were already on a platform and you already had a brand and people already knew who you were, it takes time for people to learn who you are and what you do.
Speaker A:And I wish I had started networking probably six months before I did.
Speaker A:And so don't wait until you have all the pieces in order and you know exactly what your packages are and all that.
Speaker A:All that's going to change over the course of time anyway.
Speaker A:So just get out there, start putting yourself out there.
Speaker A:Find the right rooms and get in the right mindset that you're there to provide value and to find the right people.
Speaker A:And you'll do.
Speaker A:You'll do well.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I think what prevents almost all of us from doing those types of things is like, oh, I'm waiting for the perfect moment.
Speaker B:And if you do that, you'll just, like, go to the grave with your perfect moment, right?
Speaker A:Yeah, Yeah.
Speaker A:I mean, the perfect moment's never going to.
Speaker A:It goes back to the pigeon in the road.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:You got to take the first step.
Speaker A:Just take it.
Speaker A:Just take it.
Speaker A:And even if it is a disaster, you can learn from that and not do it that way.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Never go back to that room, because that was embarrassing.
Speaker A:And then you can go on to the next room and do better.
Speaker A:And you just continue to learn and refine as you go.
Speaker A:And one of the things I've learned in the last two years of being in business is what I thought I was going to be doing two years ago is not what I'm doing right now.
Speaker A:And your business is going to ever be changing.
Speaker A:It's not something you're ever going to stop working on until you're ready to close it and retire or sell it or whatever it is that you're going to do for that next phase.
Speaker A:And so don't wait.
Speaker A:Take the first step.
Speaker A:Now get out.
Speaker A:Get out of the road.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:That's why my mom tells me all the time now, because of the pictures.
Speaker A:She was.
Speaker A:Just get out of the road.
Speaker A:Just do the thing.
Speaker A:Okay, Mom, I will.
Speaker A:Thanks.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Everything is always constantly evolving, and especially in a space like what you're doing.
Speaker B:This could change at any moment.
Speaker B:Just like during COVID it Could like completely change your whole business model.
Speaker B:So you have to be willing, able to adapt or be prepared to make some sort of changes.
Speaker A:So yeah, it's crazy in the event space, particularly in hospitality industry, like things really can change on a dime.
Speaker A:Covid really put us on, you know, turned us on our ear.
Speaker A:That was not something that we had ever seen anything like that before.
Speaker A:And I had been just about less than four weeks before shut down.
Speaker A:I was on, on site at a four day conference for 15,000 people.
Speaker A:And so to find out four weeks later that we're all going home and the world shut down, I was like, wait, what, what happened?
Speaker A:So you really do have to be able to just roll with it and whatever your business is, it doesn't matter if you're in events or you're a real estate agent, whatever your business is, you've got to be able to pivot and roll with whatever you.
Speaker A:Today, because it might be different tomorrow.
Speaker B:Yeah, there's no perfect situation just because life, life is life.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:So life is gonna life, that is.
Speaker B:You have no control over almost everything in the world happening.
Speaker B:So the best thing you can do is control yourself, your outlook, the actions that you take.
Speaker A:Absolutely 100% that's the only thing you really can control is how you respond, your attitude and yeah, that's the rest of it.
Speaker A:You just gotta let it go.
Speaker B:Can you talk about helping the first person with their event that you're gonna help them throw?
Speaker A:Yeah, so my, the first event that we did was.
Speaker A:And it actually ended up not happening.
Speaker A:We actually had to cancel it because of a conflict with the venue.
Speaker A:But we were doing a kind of like an appreciation event.
Speaker A:And so my client, he goes around sporting arenas around the world and performs.
Speaker A:He throws T shirts and does crazy dancing and stuff.
Speaker A:That's what he does.
Speaker A:That's his job.
Speaker A:He's the king of cheer.
Speaker A:And that's.
Speaker A:It's like the most amazing, it's like the only person that does that.
Speaker A:So we were doing this appreciation event and it really was just about planning out the venue and what time and what we were going to serve.
Speaker A:And he wanted to have some guest speakers so coordinating those kind of things and when they were going to be on stage and what the, the run of show was going to look like for the event.
Speaker A:And we got probably about two weeks from it when some things just shifted with their, with the venue schedule and his schedule and we weren't able to pull it off, unfortunately.
Speaker A:It's really hard when you get that close and you're like, okay, okay.
Speaker A:That's how that works out sometimes.
Speaker A:And that's.
Speaker A:That's just the nature of events.
Speaker A:But the key is when you're doing an event is to just make sure that you're constantly moving it forward, right?
Speaker A:You can't assume that something's going to change and it's not going to happen.
Speaker A:You have to be prepared and do all the things.
Speaker A:And so it's just so much fun for me to really think about and sit down with my clients and be like.
Speaker A:They're like, okay, I want to do this event and be like, okay, well, you need to think about this.
Speaker A:We need to plan for this.
Speaker A:We need to plan for that and really put in place for them the things that they need to take into consideration.
Speaker A:And because a lot of times they don't think about.
Speaker A:Oh, I didn't think about, you know, I had a call with a client yesterday and she's doing a virtual event in June.
Speaker A:And I was like, okay, well, we need to think about what happens when they register, right?
Speaker A:What are they going to get?
Speaker A:How are you going to keep them engaged from the time they sign up until the time that the event happens?
Speaker A:What's going to be the process for that?
Speaker A:And she was like, oh, I hadn't thought about that.
Speaker A:I said, okay, we'll do some thinking about it, right?
Speaker A:Because it's just one of those things that when you get into this industry and when you start doing these things, these are things that you've probably signed up for and you've gotten it, but you don't think about what goes into the back end of that to make it happen.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:And so it's really bringing that to the top of mind of this are the kind of things that now you have to think about and put into place to make sure that it runs the way it's supposed to.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker B:What are the major aspects of the event?
Speaker B:So if you could categorize them into different areas, like the registration you mentioned, the venue, the pricing, all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:So you need to think about where you're going to host it out where there's going to be virtual.
Speaker A:In person.
Speaker A:You need.
Speaker A:If it's in person, you need to think about hotel rooms.
Speaker A:Are they going to.
Speaker A:Do they need somewhere to stay?
Speaker A:Do you need to provide transportation?
Speaker A:Marketing is a whole nother piece that you have to think about the whole thing.
Speaker A:That whole thing.
Speaker A:That's a whole thing over there, right?
Speaker A:And so you need to think about if it's in person, food and beverage, you need to think about again that process of what happens from the time they register until really the events over, what happens all the way through that process.
Speaker A:One of the first questions I ask my clients is why are you having this event?
Speaker A:And it's the first question you need to answer is why?
Speaker A:And it can't be, oh, because I want to make more money.
Speaker A:Well, of course, we all do.
Speaker A:But let's get into the why.
Speaker A:Why what?
Speaker A:Why are people going to come?
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:What is going to happen when they come?
Speaker A:And so from there, that's going to answer a lot of your questions as you go forward.
Speaker A:But you know, food and beverage is a whole thing.
Speaker A:Sleeping rooms, hotel accommodations are a whole, you know, if you break it down, transportation signage, it sounds overwhelming when you start talking about, wow, she said, I had to think about all that.
Speaker A:But you're not, you're not going to think about it all today.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So in most cases, particularly for in person events, you're going to be on a 12 month or longer planning cycle because you want to get your venue booked and so forth.
Speaker A:And if you're doing virtual, if you're doing a three day summit or you're doing whatever, you're probably going to be on a six month planning cycle.
Speaker A:And so you're going to have six months to plan all of this out.
Speaker A:And you're going to do each piece in a, in a logical fashion.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So you're not going to have to do it all.
Speaker A:And we're going to start with what it's going to look like and then we're going to plug in your marketing because that's going to be a key piece.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:When do we start?
Speaker A:What do we need to do?
Speaker A:Where are we going to market it?
Speaker A:And then we'll start plugging in those logistical pieces.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:First thing is recognizing all the stuff that goes into it.
Speaker B:And then it's not impossible, obviously.
Speaker B:So it's how, how do you tackle it?
Speaker B:Piece by piece until every piece is in place, the best that it can be.
Speaker A:Yep.
Speaker A:It's basically a thousand piece puzzle or 500 piece puzzle depending on the size of your event.
Speaker A:And we're going to take all those pieces and we're going to build your border and then we're going to start filling in.
Speaker A:But we're going to do it in a way that is not overwhelming and is not chaotic.
Speaker B:Hmm.
Speaker B:Do you have the people that come to you run their own events before?
Speaker B:Are they usually the ones that coming to you for the first time just so they.
Speaker B:Because they have no idea what they're doing.
Speaker A:I've had some of both.
Speaker A:I've had some that have come to me and they, they had done events and they weren't very successful and so they're looking to figure out why.
Speaker A:And then I have some that is their very first, you know, event out the gate and they're like, I don't know what I'm doing, so can you please help me figure it out?
Speaker A:You know, and some of them really want to do events and they're not quite ready.
Speaker A:So those are conversations that I've had a couple of times like, well, I want to do this retreat in November.
Speaker A:And I'm like, it's July, we're not doing that.
Speaker A:Yeah, yeah, I'm gonna do it.
Speaker A:And so all I can do at that point is give them the timeline that they can, what they have to do to do to be successful and then hope and pray that it works out for them.
Speaker A:But I'm a big believer in not using the cross your fingers, pray to the little baby Jesus and the major method of event planning.
Speaker A:I'm a big believer.
Speaker A:And set yourself up for success.
Speaker A:Get yourself a timeline that works.
Speaker A:Because for an in person event, a multi day in person event, you are going to have to commit 120 to 150 hours to execute from the minute you have the idea to the minute it's over at a minimum.
Speaker A:And so you need to be able to have the time frame to put that amount of work in.
Speaker A:So if you want are already busy in your business, busy with your family, and you only have three or four hours a week to work on this, that's a long planning time.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:It can still be done, but you've got to give yourself the Runway to do it.
Speaker B:Yeah, I mean it's pretty much a full time job for people.
Speaker B:So the, the, the fact that people think that they can do it in less than a year's worth of time is just like, not really.
Speaker B:It's, it's possible, I guess, but I don't think it's going to lead to the best chance of success.
Speaker A:It will not.
Speaker A:And a lot of that is just miss.
Speaker A:It's just a misconception, I suppose that could you go to an event and you see it and it goes so well and you're like, I could do that.
Speaker A:That was so great.
Speaker A:I could do that.
Speaker A:And you can.
Speaker A:But what you don't know is the amount of work that went into it for months and months and months beforehand.
Speaker A:What you didn't see was the people Running around behind the scenes, taking care of all the things to make it flow so easily for you.
Speaker A:And so I really want to bust the myth that event planning is easy.
Speaker A:Event planning is easy if you give yourself the right Runway.
Speaker A:But if you try to take a Boeing 747 off on a Runway for a Cessna 180, it will not be pretty.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So, you know, give yourself the Runway that you need to be successful, and you're going to be much more successful if you try to take your Cessna 180 off on a Runway designed for a 747.
Speaker A:So let's get you the Runway that you need.
Speaker A:That gives you plenty of time to be successful.
Speaker A:And then you can the next time you be like, okay, I didn't need quite that long.
Speaker A:And you can start shortening those time frames because you're going to know exactly what to do.
Speaker A:But give yourself room to maneuver.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:What do you.
Speaker B:What are the biggest challenges that most people don't anticipate?
Speaker B:Is it usually just the timeline or are there other aspects that people overlook?
Speaker A:The biggest aspects are the timeline and the budget.
Speaker A:A lot of times what happens is they don't really know what they need to include in the budget, or they don't.
Speaker A:So they don't budget.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Like, I don't really know.
Speaker A:So I'm just gonna look at it at the end.
Speaker A:I'll see what I spent and see what I brought in and do some math.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And what.
Speaker A:You really don't just do math at the end, and that usually doesn't work out.
Speaker A:What you really need to do is look at what you're going to spend and what you want to make, set a profit goal, and then look at what you need to charge to.
Speaker A:To achieve that goal.
Speaker A:And is that amount that you need to charge.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So if you come out and you need to charge $4,500 to achieve your profit goal, and your audience isn't going to spend more than 2,000, we have a problem.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So you really want to be looking at those numbers and being really clear about what your expectations are.
Speaker A:And particularly for those higher ticket luxury items, those luxury events with the high ticket registration fees, you want to give people time to budget for that, to split it up into payments or whatever.
Speaker A:So again, it goes back into that timeframe that you need.
Speaker A:And the other thing that I see people don't do is they don't budget for their time.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:They don't include in the budget.
Speaker A:Okay, I'm going to spend 120 hours on this this is 120 hours that I'm not doing revenue generating activities, 120 hours I'm not billing for and getting paid for.
Speaker A:So I need to budget that into the budget so that I'm paid to plan this event.
Speaker A:And there are, there are events that you'll have where maybe you're not budgeting for profit because the profit is going to come from sales on, on the back end after the event.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:You're going to sell them into a program, you're going to sell products or services beyond and that's fine.
Speaker A:But if you don't look at that and figure out where the revenue is coming from, where is the profit coming from?
Speaker A:And you didn't budget for your time, you're not making a profit, you're making a salary.
Speaker A:And so when I tell people that, they go, oh yeah, because even if it's a smaller event and it's only going to take you 40 hours, if you bill $100 an hour, that's $4,000.
Speaker A:You got to have that in your budget.
Speaker A:So timeline and budget, those are the biggest things that cause people to fail.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Let's talk about the other two SOP points since you already talked about the profit portion of this.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So getting strategic about it, the first thing you want to do is figure out your why and you want to be sure that you are aligning what you're doing with your goals and where you are in your business.
Speaker A:So if you are just now getting started with events, you're probably going to want to start with an hour or a two hour event.
Speaker A:And if you're a long term girl is a seven day international retreat, you're probably going to be on a four or five year planning cycle to get to that.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And there's going to be, you're just going to gradually step up and you're going to have, as you grow your business and adjust your strategy, you're going to have goals and benchmarks that we're going to achieve together.
Speaker A:And that's how you're going to hit that big goal that you want to set.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:But it really needs to be very strategic and planned out.
Speaker A:This year I'm doing this, this and this.
Speaker A:Next year I'm going to do this, this and this that.
Speaker A:You're always moving towards that long term goal and you always know where you are and what you need to be doing.
Speaker A:And then the O is organized.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And so it really comes down to making sure that you have that clear timeline of what you need to do a Year out or six months out, or whatever your time frame is and that.
Speaker A:So when I work with my clients, we do a comprehensive timeline and checklist and it really tells them, breaks it down for them every single week, what they need to be focused on, what they need to be working on.
Speaker A:And then when we meet once or twice a month, we go through it.
Speaker A:What did we not get done, what do we need to adjust?
Speaker A:Where are there obstacles or pain points or blocks that we're having that we need to work on?
Speaker A:So that you are constantly making sure that what you're doing is moving that needle.
Speaker A:You're achieving your strategic goals, you're being organized and hitting the top, the benchmark dates that you need to hit for your event and that you're bringing in the money that you need to be bringing in to pay for the event.
Speaker B:It's a great structure because most people are like, oh, I just want to throw an event because it sounds like.
Speaker A:A fun idea and it is a fun idea.
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely, you should.
Speaker A:But let's do it in the right way and not in a way that causes overwhelm, burnout.
Speaker A:And you know, you can very quickly lose your shirt and your sanity and we don't want to do that.
Speaker B:What are the aspects of the most successful events?
Speaker A:So the most successful events are usually they're very engaging.
Speaker A:People want to come, they want to be engaged, they want to be around this, they're building community.
Speaker A:Most of them are going to have some sort of lasting impact, whether they're doing some sort of community service project or they have some sort of ongoing program once the event is over.
Speaker A:Because again, it's about engaging that community and providing value to them.
Speaker A:Most of them have some sort of aspect where people feel like it was designed just for them.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:You're keeping it very personal and the bigger you get, the harder that becomes.
Speaker A:Because obviously it's really hard to be personal when you have a 15,000 person event.
Speaker A:But the way you do that is just through training your staff, when you get to that level of event, to make sure that they're using people's names because it's on their name badge, right.
Speaker A:To make sure that they're having those one on one interactions with people.
Speaker A:But you really want to have your events feel very personal and that's what's going to keep people coming back.
Speaker A:It's not about the food, it's not about the av.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:You want your content to be on point and to be of value.
Speaker A:So they go home and they implement what they learned but you also want them to feel like, wow, that was really just for me and I feel really great that I was there.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I think one of the interesting things is that when you go to these types of events, you don't remember a single thing about the keynote that you saw or whatever it is you.
Speaker B:It's more about the feeling that the thing brought to you versus a very specific person talking.
Speaker B:Because most of those are just value lessons that you just kind of absorb and keep in the back of your mind.
Speaker B:They're there, but they're, they're not like, oh, this was a sticking point, or unless you're doing something interesting and out of the ordinary.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:It really is about the, the environment that you create that allow people to feel safe and to feel like this is their community and that they're part of it.
Speaker A:And, and that they matter.
Speaker A:And, and that comes from cultivating your audience.
Speaker A:That comes from making sure that the people that are in the room are people that are going to fill that vibe for you.
Speaker A:Whatever your audience vibe is.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And the more creative you can be, the better because people will remember that too.
Speaker A:But nobody's going to remember the food.
Speaker A:Nobody's going to remember what speaker said.
Speaker A:Exactly.
Speaker A:What they'll remember the nuggets that they learned, but they won't remember who said what.
Speaker A:You know, and, and five years from now, the events that stand out the most for me is not what about the speaker or the food, it was about how I felt when I left the room.
Speaker A:Just like you said.
Speaker A:That's what it's really about.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:One of the most memorable events that's no longer being thrown is called World Domination Summit.
Speaker B:And some of the interesting things that they did were they were trying every year to break at least a few Guinness World Records.
Speaker B:So it's like the longest high five line or something like that.
Speaker B:That's always interesting, memorable.
Speaker B:And then the other aspect was there were smaller community driven groups that were led outside of the main programming, which helped people come together.
Speaker B:So it's like, right, you don't need to control every aspect of it, but they're, you can create memorable things while doing it.
Speaker B:And you can also foster community by just having the community like meet with themselves and like kind of build rapport outside of you necessarily needing to be there.
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A: for Costa Rica in October of: Speaker A:Oh, my plane's delayed or oh, I'm at this.
Speaker A:Wherever, wherever.
Speaker A:And a year later, there's.
Speaker A:That group is still communicating in that WhatsApp group.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:They're still sending messages to one another of support.
Speaker A:Hey, I've got this coming up.
Speaker A:I could use some support.
Speaker A:Hey, I've got a new podcast.
Speaker A:Can y', all, you know, subscribe or whatever?
Speaker A:And so that's what the power of events is, is building a community that supports.
Speaker A:Supports you well past the time of the event's over.
Speaker A:You know, years later, there are people that you're still going to have in your community that are supporting you.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:It's about being a connector, for one thing, and having that memorable experience, and they'll.
Speaker B:They'll always remember that.
Speaker B:And if they.
Speaker B:If you're offering something that they need again, obviously that reminds them that you are there for them.
Speaker A:Yep, absolutely.
Speaker B:Talk about the other end of the.
Speaker B:How to be like a better speaker, I guess, and how to find these speaking events and that kind of aspect of your work.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So when it comes to being a speaker, I kind of break the speaking engagement down into three phases.
Speaker A:And the first phase is the spark phase.
Speaker A:And that's really where you're going to be working your network to build relationships and offer value so that when those speaking opportunities come up, you can reach out to that person and be like, hey, I saw that you have such and such conference coming up.
Speaker A:I would love to be a speaker.
Speaker A:What is your process to apply?
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And so you really want to cultivate those things.
Speaker A:Really be clear on who you want to be in front of speaking.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Because you don't want to be on every single stage.
Speaker A:You want to be on the stages that are going to bring people into your business.
Speaker A:So get really clear on who that is, so then we can identify where they're going to be and look at those organizations, those associations and those places for those speaking engagements.
Speaker A:And then start working your network to really build relationships with those event planners, with those industry leaders, with the people that are going to make those decisions about who's going to be on that stage in front of that person.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And not just hit them up on LinkedIn and be like, hey, I want to come speak for you, but be willing to provide some value.
Speaker A:Like, be like, hey, I saw that you have this event coming up.
Speaker A:I would love to share this with my audience.
Speaker A:And how do you become a speaker for this?
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Here's a free article that I've done that you might want to share with your audience in your newsletter.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Really provide some value and cultivate a relationship with those people because that in the long run is going to get you more speaking opportunities because they're going to be become a referral source for you.
Speaker A:And then once you have your network that's constantly funneling you speaking engagements, right, they're going to be sending them to you and you're going to be speaking on.
Speaker A:The more you speak, the more you're going to be able to speak.
Speaker A:Excuse me.
Speaker A:Then once you get booked, then you're going to move into that, what I call the flame phase, right?
Speaker A:And this is where you're going to really be a good partner with the event planner.
Speaker A:And you're going to make sure that all of your deliverables, your contract, your invoices, your headshot, your collateral, your headshot bio, the things that they're going to need to be able to do their job, are delivered to them on time.
Speaker A:So make sure that you're very aware of what your deadlines are and that you're not just meeting them, but you're getting it there before they're looking for it, right?
Speaker A:Like, if your deadline is today, don't send it today, send it last week so that they're not like, did I get that?
Speaker A:Where is it?
Speaker A:Do I have to remind them?
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:Just be that person that's ahead of the game and make sure that when you're preparing your talk, you're operating off the 80, 20 rule, right?
Speaker A:80% of your talk doesn't change, but 20% is going to be geared towards whatever is that audience, whoever's in that audience.
Speaker A:You're going to tweak it to that industry, to that association, to that corporation, right?
Speaker A:So that those people feel like, oh, wow, they prepared this just for us.
Speaker A:And they're going to be able to connect and engage with you on that level.
Speaker A:And then once you're through the speaking engagement and you step off that stage, then we're going to move into what I call the ember phase.
Speaker A:And this is the phase that a lot of speakers drop.
Speaker A:They just move on and that's fine.
Speaker A:But sometimes an ember will spark back up into a flame.
Speaker A:So you really want to cultivate the relationship further in the ember phase by making sure that all those people that came up to you at the end of the event, that you connect with them, right?
Speaker A:And you enter them into that spark phase and you start cultivating those relationships that you send a thank you card and a gift to the meeting planner.
Speaker A:Even if it's just.
Speaker A:I just, I spoke last week and I sent Her a card and a sticker that I thought she would, you know, that she would like.
Speaker A:It's not, it doesn't have to be some elaborate gift, right.
Speaker A:Just a little note saying thank you so much for having me in your audience, you know, on your stage and sharing my knowledge with your audience.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And then making sure that you are consistently have some sort of system for follow up with, with everybody that has ever booked you to speak.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Don't just thanks and you move on and you never talk to them again.
Speaker A:You're going to continue, you know, if you find somebody that would be great for their stage, introduce them.
Speaker A:But hey, I met so and so and they would be great for your audience.
Speaker A:I thought you might like to meet them, be a referral source for them and they will be a referral source for you.
Speaker A:So it really comes down to not just having a great message because you want.
Speaker B:That's a minimum, right?
Speaker B:Bare minimum.
Speaker A:The bare minimum is to have a great message and be able to deliver your talk, but to really be a good partner and be willing to provide value above and beyond the message that you are delivering.
Speaker B:Hmm.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I think that's so important because what we're really looking for, especially since you've seen both sides, is you just want to be treated the way that others.
Speaker B:It's like the golden rule, kind of.
Speaker B:But like how instead of how you would treat others, it's like how you would want to be treated.
Speaker A:Right, right.
Speaker A:That's exactly right.
Speaker A:You know, and I tell people I said this last week when I was speaking to a group of speakers and talking about how to get strategic, organized and profitable with their speaking.
Speaker A:And I said, you know, sitting in the meeting planner seat, I know what it takes for, for you to get a referral from me.
Speaker A:And I know what it takes for me to want to put toothpicks under your fingernails.
Speaker A:So you decide which.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Because I've had those speakers that it's like, oh my God, how many times do I have to email you and ask you for your headshot?
Speaker A:I cannot promote you, I cannot promote your talk until I have this information.
Speaker A:So please don't make me work harder for it.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:You know, so they just kind of laugh.
Speaker A:But it's true.
Speaker A:Like, you just don't want to be the person.
Speaker A:You don't want to be the squeaky wheel when it comes to being, working with a meeting planner.
Speaker A:And the people that are making the decision, don't be the squeaky wheel because they will remember you, but they will not refer you yeah, it just goes.
Speaker B:Back to like that same networking piece where you're.
Speaker B:You just want to have the best presence.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:Just so that you're memorable and people want to help you.
Speaker B:It's like, not that they have to, but they want to because you were helpful for them making their jobs easier, right?
Speaker A:Yes, yes.
Speaker A:They want to help you because you made their jobs easier.
Speaker A:That's the perfect way to say it.
Speaker A:I'm going to steal that.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I mean, that's just the way that relationships work.
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker B:You, you want to help the people who are good to you, who are kind to you, make a difference.
Speaker B:And that's the type of person you need to be in order to, to make connections beyond the single stage.
Speaker A:Yes, absolutely.
Speaker A:That is exactly.
Speaker A:You know, be the kind of partner that you would want somebody to be with you.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Provide that value, provide the support.
Speaker A:And it's not transactional.
Speaker A:It's not about what I'm going to get out of it.
Speaker A:It's about what I can do for you.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:If you were gonna throw your own event, what kind of event would you throw?
Speaker B:And like, how would you prepare for that?
Speaker B:I don't know if you've thought of this yet.
Speaker A:I have not thought and I have never been asked that question.
Speaker A:So kudos to you for asking a question I've never been asked before.
Speaker A:I think if I were going to throw my own event, I would throw some sort of masquerade ball.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Where people can dress up and they can come and I would probably have like a silent auction kind of thing to support a non profit so people can come and we would be giving back to the community and we would have food and we would have drink and we would all be dressed up in, have our little masks and maybe there would be a reveal thing at the end and maybe there'd be prizes for costumes and.
Speaker A:Yeah, that's what would happen.
Speaker B:You haven't thought about it though?
Speaker A:I haven't.
Speaker A:So I just like, I just planned a whole event.
Speaker A:That's kind of how my brain works.
Speaker A:Like, okay, so what would we have?
Speaker A:We would have food and beverage.
Speaker A:We would have this.
Speaker A:We would have so, you know, silent auction and we would support a cause.
Speaker A:So that's just.
Speaker A:Yeah, because I think that would be fun.
Speaker B:Yeah, I mean, you know how to make it happen.
Speaker A:So like, oh, now I'm kind of excited.
Speaker A:What are we doing?
Speaker B:You can make that happen at any point, right?
Speaker A:I could make it happen at any point.
Speaker A:Like I'm seeing this huge ballroom with the stage, with the Band like I now.
Speaker A:See now, Kevin, now I'm gonna have to plan a masquerade ball.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:It doesn't have to.
Speaker B:Obviously you need at least a year.
Speaker B:So you got years to plan this.
Speaker A:I got a year.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Maybe we'll do it for Mardi Gras next year.
Speaker B:Oh.
Speaker B:So see, there you go.
Speaker A:Done.
Speaker A:Done.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:That would be fun.
Speaker A:That would be fun.
Speaker B:And then you can invite all your event speakers.
Speaker B:You can invite your event throwers.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:People that you work with.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:It would be a great.
Speaker A:That would be a really fun event.
Speaker A:And we just have to find a non profit to support.
Speaker A:That would be the hard part because I care about so many organization which one is, which one would win.
Speaker A:Maybe we would split it three ways or something, you know?
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Like do more than.
Speaker A:More than just one.
Speaker B:Or you could always have the auctions to, you know, different things and those charities get proceeds from auctions.
Speaker B:Split the.
Speaker B:Split the money.
Speaker A:Split the money.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:All right, now.
Speaker A:Now I've got a task.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Now I have to figure out what I'm gonna dress up.
Speaker A:I've got to figure out what my costume's gonna be.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah, that's also very important, especially if you're going to be the host, right?
Speaker A:Yes, yes, absolutely.
Speaker A:What fun.
Speaker A:Okay, I like that question.
Speaker B:What's the most interesting or memorable event that you've been to?
Speaker A:Probably I had the privilege of working for an organization that does education for veterinarians.
Speaker A:They do like hands on training.
Speaker A:And every year we did an A event for the vet techs, which are basically nurses in that.
Speaker A:In that world.
Speaker A:And they were a super fun group.
Speaker A:And so it was always themed.
Speaker A:And so we got to one year do a Harry Potter themed event.
Speaker A:And I got to be the mc and I made up these.
Speaker A:I did.
Speaker A:My character was Heather, Heather Lovegood, which was Luna's more fabulous cousin.
Speaker A:And so I had these crazy wacky outfits and I crocheted a couple things to go with it.
Speaker A:And I got to create the games that we had three teams and I got to create the games that the three teams played every day to whoever was going to win got to go to lunch first, which was a big deal because 100, you know, 20, 30 something year old kids, I say kids because they're way younger than me, you know, to get to lunch first, that was a big deal.
Speaker A:So that was a lot of fun.
Speaker A:I love being creative and being able to do that.
Speaker A:But our staff just had a lot of fun working on it together and it was just a really joyful event that I got to work on for a couple years.
Speaker A:So that was fun.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:It's all about making those memorable experiences.
Speaker B:Like we said earlier, where's the way that you can make your event fun and interesting as opposed to.
Speaker B:Okay, speaker, speaker, speaker, break, lunch, speaker, speaker, speaker.
Speaker B:Like that.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker A:Yeah, that's nice.
Speaker A:But when you can gamify it, when you can get people engaged and actually participating in what's going on, the experience is going to be elevated to a different level.
Speaker A:And that's really what you want to do.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Make it as memorable and interesting as possible so that people will want to do it again.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker B:Unless you don't want to do another event.
Speaker B:You realize you don't.
Speaker B:You didn't do any events.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And you want them to not only want to do it again, but you want them to bring their friend next time.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:If your plan is to grow and bring that business back to yourself, those are the kinds of things that you have to think about.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker B:A few more questions left.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:Do you know anyone personally who also runs a standout creative business, and what do they do to stand out?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So I know several creative business owners, but one of my favorites is Rachel Lee.
Speaker A:And so she's a brand expert, and she creates people's.
Speaker A:Helps them create a brand that is unique to them.
Speaker A:And she is just super fun and super creative.
Speaker A:And I met her in a networking call.
Speaker A:She sent me a couple referrals.
Speaker A:She's a super.
Speaker A:What I call super connector.
Speaker A:She will just.
Speaker A:She will send you referral after referral after referral without expecting anything in return.
Speaker A:And she's just a super, super fun human being.
Speaker A:And I love her work.
Speaker A:In fact, she's.
Speaker A:She's in the middle of a rebrand herself right now.
Speaker A:She's rebranding her own business.
Speaker A:Um, so check out Rachel lee.
Speaker A:She's on LinkedIn and Instagram, and she's just got some super fun, super creative things going on out there in her.
Speaker A:In her business.
Speaker B:That's awesome.
Speaker B:I think one of the things that we can all do better is just be more of ourselves.
Speaker B:I think that's the best way to, to kind of make it through the crowd, because anyone can be generic.
Speaker A:Yeah, right.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:And I think it's hard for creatives sometimes to.
Speaker A:To be themselves because we're so worried about fitting in and we're worried about what people are going to say.
Speaker A:And the thing that I have learned over the course, because I've.
Speaker A:I've been down that road, you know, but I Don't want to be in a box.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:I'm going to be myself.
Speaker A:And so one of the things that I've really struggled with is being authentic to my own quirky little personality and showcasing who I really am.
Speaker A:And so one of the things I've started doing now that I'm finally doing videos, because I didn't want to do videos because I was like, you know, But I was like, if I can showcase my personality.
Speaker A:So I have been wearing all kinds of fun sunglasses in my videos to showcase my personality.
Speaker A:And I think that when we can try stay true to who we really are and be authentic, like you said, that people, the right people are going to resonate with you.
Speaker A:And the people that don't resonate with you, they're not your people anyway.
Speaker A:So just be your authentic, fun self, whatever that looks like.
Speaker A:Don't get in that box that says we have to do it this way.
Speaker A:You know, we don't have to do it that way.
Speaker A:Do it your way and you'll attract the right people that way.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:One of the funny things is we're all worried about what these other people are going to think, and we don't want those people anyway.
Speaker B:So it's like, what are we so worried about?
Speaker B:That it's like, it doesn't make any sense.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker A:Why do we.
Speaker A:Why do I care?
Speaker A:I wouldn't work with them anyway, so why do I.
Speaker A:Why do I care so much what they say?
Speaker A:Because I spent months working myself up to do these videos and talking myself out of doing it because I was afraid somebody would, say, make an ugly comment.
Speaker A:So what if they do?
Speaker A:What?
Speaker A:What's gonna happen?
Speaker A:Like, nothing.
Speaker A:So just put yourself out there and the people that like it, like it.
Speaker A:If you get a troll, guess what?
Speaker A:You've reached a whole new level of success on the Internet.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:Yay, you have a troll.
Speaker A:Move on.
Speaker A:Like today I posted a video that's not the best video.
Speaker A:There was some editing issues and I was like, you know what?
Speaker A:I don't have another 30 minutes to sit here and re record.
Speaker A:I'm just putting it up the way it is.
Speaker A:This is it.
Speaker A:This is real.
Speaker A:This is what happens in my.
Speaker A:In my world.
Speaker A:Just be authentic and real and people will connect with that.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I think the funny thing is, like, people.
Speaker B:When people do blooper reels, you love it.
Speaker B:But when we do it ourselves are like, oh, no, I could never.
Speaker B:I could never put that up.
Speaker A:I just stumbled over my work.
Speaker A:The number of times that I've stopped.
Speaker A:Start over Stop.
Speaker A:Start over today.
Speaker A:I was like, I don't have time for that.
Speaker A:We're going to one take.
Speaker A:We got one take and we got to go.
Speaker B:Yeah, we're all people, and that's something that we often forget.
Speaker B:Especially because if you're trying to run a business, you want to be as professional as possible.
Speaker B:But also everyone's kind of just human.
Speaker A:So, yeah, we're all kind of just human.
Speaker A:I'm feeling that, too.
Speaker B:What's one extraordinary book, podcast, documentary, or tool that's made the biggest impact on your journey?
Speaker A:Two books that I would recommend that's made a big impact on me are Atomic habits and the 12 week year.
Speaker A:And I would read them in that order, probably.
Speaker A:And because it really does help you hone in on how to really change your behavior so that you can take those baby steps and start making the changes that you need or want to make to achieve your biggest goals.
Speaker A:They're both excellent sources and excellent books.
Speaker A:And if you read the books and you implement the strategies, you will see growth and change in.
Speaker A:In whatever avenue of your life that you're looking for growth and change.
Speaker B:You're the second person that I've heard 12 week year.
Speaker B:So I guess I'll have to check it out.
Speaker A:You should check it out.
Speaker A:And as people think that it's about cramming a year's worth of work into 12 weeks, it's not.
Speaker A:It's really about, instead of looking with annualized thinking, where we set our goals in January and then in October when we realize we haven't done any work on them, we kind of like, we get really, oh, okay, I gotta do all this work, right?
Speaker A:And we.
Speaker A:We get that intense feeling that we need to work on it.
Speaker A:And all it does is create that urgency throughout the whole year.
Speaker A:So basically, one day becomes a week, and one month becomes a.
Speaker A:And one week becomes a month, one day becomes a week, and one week becomes a month.
Speaker A:And so you Wait, how's that working again, Matt?
Speaker B:I don't know.
Speaker A:Sorry.
Speaker A:So basically you're just compressed.
Speaker A:You're only looking at what you're going to achieve for this 12 weeks.
Speaker A:This is what I'm going to achieve for this 12 weeks.
Speaker A:At the end of the 12 weeks, you have a week to celebrate, just like you do at the end of.
Speaker A:Of any year.
Speaker A:And then you start a whole new.
Speaker A:And you don't worry about what you achieved or you didn't achieve.
Speaker A:You start with the.
Speaker A:You start fresh and you move on from there.
Speaker A:So it's really just about.
Speaker A:Instead of working on 12 months, you're working on 12 weeks.
Speaker B:How many 12 weeks years have you done?
Speaker A:I guess so I've done two different groups actually with it.
Speaker A:And so at one point I had two groups going at the same time.
Speaker A:So I guess I've done the equivalent of four 12 week years.
Speaker A:And at the end of the day, you're only as successful as your systems and you're only as successful if you actually look and do the work and make the progress.
Speaker A:So I've had 12 weeks where I was success successful and I've had 12 weeks where I'm not very much like you would with annual goals.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:It's really about.
Speaker A:But when you break it down into the 12 weeks, it becomes more manageable.
Speaker A:And I don't feel like when I get to June, like, well, I haven't done anything, so forget it.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:I can be like, okay, that was, that didn't work out the last 12 weeks.
Speaker A:I'm going to start over and do this again.
Speaker A:So it really changes that.
Speaker A:Having to wait for January before I can start working on that goal.
Speaker A:Which is really crazy thinking if you think about it.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Why do we, why do we wait?
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Why do we?
Speaker A:Well, I can't wait.
Speaker A:I can't set resolutions till January.
Speaker A:Who made up this rule?
Speaker A:I don't know, but it's just helpful from that standpoint.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's.
Speaker B:That's why most people give up because, oh, I'm a certain way through.
Speaker B:The gyms are always packed in the beginning of the year.
Speaker B:By March, there's nobody there.
Speaker B:Again, the number of people.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:I used to be a gym rat and I used to be at the gym three times a day.
Speaker A:And I, I hated January.
Speaker A:I was like, look, I was here in December.
Speaker A:Where were all you people?
Speaker A:I should get first priority, first dibs on my treadmill.
Speaker A:First dibs, like just reserve it for me.
Speaker A:Gold's Jam.
Speaker A:You know, I'm coming at this time every day.
Speaker A:But by March it would be cleared back out and I could have my treadmill anytime I wanted.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:But yeah, I mean, we, we what?
Speaker A:A lot of times what happens is we set these goals and then we start working for it.
Speaker A:We're really, we're really excited.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:I'm gonna do this.
Speaker A:And then we don't see that immediate change happen because we are immediate gratification and then we stop.
Speaker A:But if we just kept going, we're right there, right.
Speaker A:We're right about to push past that, that zone where we're gonna start to see the Improvement.
Speaker A:And that's the thing that with the 12 week year is that you're not looking to lose, you know, £80.
Speaker A:You're not looking to run a marathon.
Speaker A:You're just looking to be able to run a mile.
Speaker A:You're looking to lose, you know, £12.
Speaker A:It suddenly becomes much more manageable.
Speaker A:And if you don't do it, you know, okay, well, I can, I did six pounds, I lost six pounds, I ran half a mile.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So it really makes it more of that instant gratification that we're looking for.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Just like earlier, baby steps towards baby steps.
Speaker A:It really comes back to, to the baby steps.
Speaker A:Taking the first baby step and continuing to take baby steps every day.
Speaker B:What do you think makes a creative business stand out?
Speaker B:And what is one piece of advice you'd give someone based on your experience on how to make their business stand out?
Speaker A:So I think it goes back to what we were talking about, about being authentic and being yourself.
Speaker A:I think that people resonate with that.
Speaker A:I think consistently showing up, being consistent in whatever you're doing helps people stand out.
Speaker A:If you're inconsistent with whatever you're doing, people are going to be like, don't know if they can count on you or not.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Like, I don't know if she's going to put that video out.
Speaker A:She promised a day.
Speaker A:I don't know if she's going to have a class this month.
Speaker A:I don't know if they're going to open at the same hours every day.
Speaker A:So whatever you're doing, do it authentically, be consistent doing it and be in a place of service.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Have that heart of service.
Speaker A:How can I serve my clients?
Speaker A:How can I serve my customers?
Speaker A:How can I serve my audience?
Speaker A:Because those are the things that people are looking for today.
Speaker A:They want to have those authentic connections and build relationships.
Speaker A:So when you're open with a heart of service and it's not about how much money are you going to pay me this month, how much money are you going to spend in my store Right.
Speaker A:When you're there, how can I serve you?
Speaker A:They're going to connect with that and they're going to remember you and they're going to come back and they'll bring a friend.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's just, just like being the best person that you can be.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:Just like we're.
Speaker B:I think we're all just trying to complicate things for ourselves when the best thing that we can do is be the best versions of ourselves and help other people be the best versions of themselves.
Speaker B:Through our work.
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker A:That's absolutely correct.
Speaker A:Be the best version.
Speaker A:Be the change you want to see and you'll attract the people that want that change.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker B:Can you give the listeners a challenge that they can take action on right away?
Speaker A:Yep.
Speaker A:I think it will go back to the theme that's kind of ran through.
Speaker A:This is taking baby steps.
Speaker A:I challenge you to think about one big goal that you've had.
Speaker A:Something that's been on your heart, been in the back of your mind for a long time.
Speaker A:You just haven't.
Speaker A:Like, I just don't know if I'm gonna do that, take one step towards that goal today.
Speaker A:So if your big goal is I want to write a book, write one sentence today.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:If your big goal is I want to run a marathon, go walk for 15 minutes today, whatever your big goal, if I achieved this, it would be heaven on earth.
Speaker A:Whatever that burning desire is in your heart, figure out what is one thing you can do today and go do that.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Every life changing thing starts with the tiniest of actions.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:I mean, you know, and they talk about this in the 12 week year and in atomic habits.
Speaker A:You don't achieve greatness when you achieve the gold medal as an Olympic athlete.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Like Michael Phelps is a great swimmer, but he didn't achieve greatness when he won however many gold medals he has.
Speaker A:He achieved greatness when he started doing the things consistently that he needed to do to achieve the gold medal.
Speaker A:We don't know about the hours and hours and hours he spent in the pool because we don't see that part.
Speaker A:Nobody talks about that.
Speaker A:So your greatness is going to happen when you start taking those baby steps and start doing the things consistently that are going to get you to that gold medal, whatever that gold medal is for you.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:It's not about the Instagram moments, it's about the moments that live up to that moment.
Speaker A:That's exactly right.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So go have a non Instagram moment and you know what?
Speaker A:Post it on Instagram because you might inspire somebody else to have their own.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker B:Well, Heather, it's been really great talking to you.
Speaker B:I think you're helping a lot of people do great things with events and speaking.
Speaker B:Can you tell the listeners where they can keep up to date with your work or contact you?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So I'm on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Speaker A:Instagram's effing its collaboration.
Speaker A:So when you post that non Instagram moment, please tag me so that I can celebrate it with you and Facebook.
Speaker A:Heather D. Black or Phoenix Collaborations is my business page.
Speaker A:And then on LinkedIn.
Speaker A:I'm Heather D. Black, and I have a website, Phoenix collaborations.com so.
Speaker A:And it has all my links.
Speaker A:I'm also on YouTube.
Speaker A:I just launched a YouTube channel after all of my fear of not doing videos.
Speaker A:So you can find me.
Speaker B:It's gonna be me, right?
Speaker A:It's rough, but my YouTube channel is igniteyourincome, so I'm on all the places.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker B:Well, yeah.
Speaker B:Thanks again, Heather.
Speaker B:It's been great talking to you.
Speaker A:Thanks so much for having me today.
Speaker A:Kevin, it's been a pleasure.
Speaker B:Heather isn't just planning events.
Speaker B:She's helping creative business owners rise above the chaos and actually make money from ideas.
Speaker B:Ideas that they care about.
Speaker B:Now it's your turn.
Speaker B:What if your next idea didn't feel overwhelming, but aligned, intentional, and profitable?
Speaker B:If you're ready to stop winging it and start building something that works, I'd love to help.
Speaker B:Head to thestandoutcreatives.com and book a free strategy session.
Speaker B:Let's get clear, let's get organized, and let's make something wheel that actually moves the needle.
Speaker B:Thanks, and I'll see you next time.
