What did you do for International Women’s Day? I went to The Thrive Effect’s Female Founders Business Brunch to listen to great speakers, share with peers and soak up the positive vibes.

I also went to the 100 First Women Exhibition at Brighton Museum at the weekend so it has been a very inspiring couple of days. The exhibition is free to Brighton residents and continues to the 7th June 2020.

“It is my hope that women who dream big will look at these pictures and see that they are not alone.” Anita Corbin

100 First Women Exhibition by Anita Corbin at Brighton Museum

 

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The Thrive Effect

Back to The Thrive Effect… If you haven’t attended one of their events yet, I thoroughly recommend giving them a try. Why?

  • Inspirational speakers.
  • Great peer support and learning.
  • Lead generation and partnership opportunities.

The Thrive Effect run a monthly evening event in Brighton and Hassocks (soon to expand to other areas) and a quarterly Female Founders Business Brunch in Brighton.

The Thrive Effect Brighton Clare Griffiths

On Friday we had the pleasure of hearing Carina Bauer from IMEX Group and Lucy Tarrant from Cognitive Law speak and they tackled the real issues faced by female entrepreneurs in an engaging and entertaining way and left us with tangible takeaways that we could apply to our own businesses.

So let’s talk about what was learnt at the event.

By the way… you may not be able to hold your planned event or conference thanks to Coronavirus and you may not be able to get in front of clients in person so much… want to talk about video alternatives for events, conferences and marketing your business? Let’s talk…

1. Carina Bauer, CEO of the IMEX Group

The Thrive Effect Brighton Carina Bauer of IMEX Group

Carina talked about the challenges of running an international, large-scale events company.

So what were Carina’s top tips for managing your team and business?

  1. Being a team leader – Firstly, be aware of your influence as a leader of a team. For example, how you having a down day might affect your team.
    Secondly, make sure you communicate your vision, purpose and direction with your team (by the way have you tried using video for your internal communications or training? Of course I was going to plug that!😉).
    Thirdly, delegate little and large tasks and trust your team to carry it out – you can’t do everything and will become incredibly stressed out if you try to.
  2. Equality is not the same as equity – try to treat people like individuals, whether that is your internal team or your clients. Everyone has different problems so treat them respectfully and as individuals.
  3. Recruit slowly and fire quickly. Carina says that if someone is not the right fit then no-one will be happy; not you, not them and not your team.
  4. Pay attention to your culture. Culture is who you are at heart and soul. Carina says that culture trumps strategy as your team can live and work off that.

I really appreciated Carina’s honesty about the challenges of running a big business at a challenging time, considering current international events.

 

2. Lucy Tarrant, Founder and MD of Cognitive Law

The Thrive Effect Brighton Lucy Tarrant

Lucy’s mission is to change the law industry one solicitor at a time! Everyone at Cognitive Law is self employed and has control over how they work, meaning they can enjoy flexible working (not historically common in this sector) and spend more time doing the things and with the people that they love.

“I was just the gobby girl at the bar and every man in the room thought he knew better… but I knew there was a better way.” Lucy Tarrant

Did you know that although 60% of those qualifying as solicitors are women, they account for only around 30% of partners? Ouch.

So it’s been a challenging journey bringing about a new approach… what has Lucy learnt along the way?

  1. Men need to be involved in making a difference too because this is not just a feminist issue, men also benefit from flexible working. Lucy says, “My mission is equality, to reduce everyone’s anger and frustration and help them to see that there is another way.” If anything, men need to be more involved for change to happen, as some men will only listen to other men.
  2. Celebrate your achievements, even if they are small. Every time the phone rings Lucy thinks she’s about to be rumbled… thanks to imposter syndrome. You must give yourself a pat on the back, even if no-one else will.
  3. Trust your gut instinct and pivot if needed. If you sense that something is wrong, listen to that instinct.
  4. Never ever beat yourself up about anything. Running a business is hard work, everyone makes mistakes but it’s not productive to dwell on them. Dust yourself off and move on.
  5. Surround yourself with support – at home and at work. You don’t know what you don’t know so having a mentor and/or coach could be really helpful. Ask for help!
  6. Take time off because if you don’t find time for yourself you won’t be very good for anyone else.

When was the last time you took time off from your business? I find myself having to book in time off into my calendar or it will never happen. Do you?

 Have you seen the Let’s Talk Video Production YouTube channel?

 

All the good vibes…

As cheesy as it sounds, I left this event with a real feeling of having been embraced and supported by my group of peers. Thanks to the other attendees who bigged me up and recommended me to others, I really appreciated that.

Organiser Clare Griffiths has created something really special here so make sure you book yourself on to a Thrive Effect event. And thanks to Barclays Eagle Labs Brighton who host the event too because things like this wouldn’t be able to happen without the generosity of partners like them.

Are you looking for a video or podcast producer or trainer?

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