Melissa is a self labeled extrovert who helps small business with her graphic design and marketing expertise. Learn how she is growing her network and developing new projects by collaborating with others.
Location: Portland, OR
Business: Graphic design and marketing for small businesses
How we met: Through Pioneer Nation
It amazes me that every person I talk to has different and unique ways of building a network and a community. Melissa is building her community in a number of ways:
- She goes to conferences like Pioneer Nation and World Domination Summit, and then continues relationships with people she meets there
- She collaborates with other entrepreneurs on various projects
- She does co-working sessions, in which she gets together with other entrepreneurs to work on projects and get feedback and inspiration
Something that stood out to me about Melissa was her focus on collaboration. It’s a way of connecting that I hadn’t thought of before. Melissa said that she used to work for a marketing firm before going off on her own. Working for herself is great, but it gets lonely sometimes. This year, she has really been focusing on working with other creative entrepreneurs. When she works with others, she can benefit from their different ideas, and it doesn’t feel as isolating as working by herself.
Melissa feels like she can find her “tribe” at Pioneer Nation and World Domination Summit.
She says that in other groups, she finds that people are less likely to want to collaborate than the people she has met from those conferences. She likes the idea that we are all in this together, and we can elevate our level of work together. Regardless of how you feel about yourself, the attendees and speakers at the conferences make you feel like you can play big, because they are playing big, too.
Many people I’ve talked to have said that they judge the “success” of an event or experience on the type of people they meet there. What Melissa said about those two conferences drove home, once again, that sometimes, it’s the tone of an event, rather than the content, that makes it successful.
When I asked Melissa what is difficult in her business right now, she said time management.
With all of the content available for small business owners, and with all of the projects and collaborations Melissa is working on, it’s hard for her to have time to do everything. This sentiment echoed what a lot of other people have told me – that managing time as an entrepreneur can be tough, because there is always more to do and learn.
My takeaways:
- Collaboration is key. There is no better way to truly bond with someone than to work on a project together. (As long as it’s the right person.)
- Certain events just attract the “right” kind of people. As someone creating events, how do I shape an event to attract the people I want to come?
- Going to a conference is just the first step – it’s the relationships you come away with and develop that make a long lasting impact.
Melissa wants to connect with:
More people that are inspirational.
Do you want to connect with Melissa? Check out her LinkedIn profile here.
1 step you can take to grow your network today:
Connect with others in your local community to see if they would be interested in co-working with you.