By Kathleen RonaldSouthwest Bureau Chief (Utah, Arizona, Nevada, California)
This month, I’m excited to introduce you to a wonderful new group for women that I discovered through my friend Ms. Sally Kraus. Sally is the area coordinator for a truly welcoming organization called Heart Link.
I met Sally through a friend of mine a few years back, when I first arrived in Los Angeles. I love the power of networking, and enjoy seeing how things unfold in relationships that are first realized from networking events.
I had become frustrated with networking organizations here in LA, and I was feeling disconnected because the last three that I had come to love had all dissolved. I was yearning for a community I could call home, when I was able to attend my first meeting at Sally’s house earlier this month. The unique goal and aspect of this small home-based network, in Sally's words, is that "Heart Link is building a community of support for each other. Because the group changes each month, there is variety and people are always meeting new people from different industries and walks of life."
As you know, I always love to hear the story of how folks get involved in different groups. When I talked to Sally, my first question was, "How did you get introduced to Heart Link?" Sally's reply: "Accidentally!" Sally went on to tell me how she met Carolyn Ziel of Essential Selling, at an EWomen meeting at which I was speaking, and they quickly connected and became fast friends. Carolyn became an Area Coordinator and invited Sally to a Heart Link meeting in her home in June of 2008. Because the meeting is in her home, as Carolyn says, "we are able to create a warm and intimate setting while still being professional." Sally loved it. After that first meeting, she was hooked.
The aspects Sally initially loved about Heart Link are the same values that I found so wonderful about the group. Sally loved that it was cozy and in the home, informal, with no membership dues, with a casual tone yet still maintaining business energy, and that everybody got 3 minutes to share with the group about their products and services. So, after that first visit, she too became an Area Coordinator. As a long time business & marketing coach for the artist community, Sally had visited many different groups but never felt a connection until Heart Link. Sally says, "I love this organization and have two meetings people can attend in the 90036 area code here in LA. I do a dinner meeting on Thursday and a breakfast meeting on Saturday in the 1st week of the month."
I have to echo Sally’s feelings after I attended my first meeting. They really encourage folks to keep the meetings small and since they are home based, each home has a different dynamic and ability to host certain number of attendees. I felt the heart of Heart Link when I arrived. Sally had prepared an amazing dinner and although she said the meeting was the smallest she had ever had, it was perfect for me. I arrived with only ONE intention…I just wanted to get out and be with other businesswomen. It was very casual, easy flowing and we each got our time as well, since we were so small. I really like the model they use. It gave us all a chance to really get to know each other at a deeper level with the small group.
To my surprise, I walked out with some great leads, a couple of potential coaching clients, an offer to be highlighted in Carolyn’s ezine as an Entrepreneur of the month as well as I’ll be a guest on her tele-class series down the road too!
I also won one of the raffle prizes from Heather, one of the attendees, who makes customized candles and works on many of the Hollywood sets doing all their candles. It was great fun! Even she found some opportunities there: the candle goddess will be taking my year long space-clearing boot camp ~ WOW! Now that is what I call a return on your investment!
The cost to attend a meeting is only $20, and if you bring a friend, which is fondly known as ‘coming linked’ in the Heart Link community, it costs only $30 for the two of you. There are no annual dues.
The group was founded by the legendary Dawn Billings- a renowned author, speaker and networking expert, who was selected as one of the top 80 women’s leaders by Oprah’s magazine and The White House Project! An extraordinary visionary, Dawn noticed that there were some core values she believed should be present in any group, which were lacking in many that she saw. So, she launched Heart Link, which had 140 locations in 27 states in the first 160 days.
So, if you are looking for a local group within your zip code to call home, this might be the group for you. Unlike other groups which offer, and charge for, a confusing array of services that you will probably never take advantage of, Heart Link keeps it simple. Their benefits are basic, but have certainly met my networking needs.
· Home based meeting each month
· You can attend meetings in any city that there are Area Coordinators
· You can market to the Area Coordinators listed on the website with your products and services if you wish
· Comfortable, welcoming small communities with a far-reaching spectrum of connections
· You get an Excel sheet of all the attendee’s data- trust me, this is a big help
· Grow your business, your friendships, and beyond
Since there are no fees to join, you can attend a meeting near you. In the LA area you can find a meeting in Studio City, West Hills or Santa Clarita. In addition, there are two locations in Torrance, with one coming soon to West Hollywood.
If you are interested in becoming an Area Coordinator you can contact Sally Kraus at 323-937-8866 or email her at sally@enterprisingartists.com
www.enterprisingartists.com
_____________________________
Posted to THE NATIONAL NETWORKER. To subscribe for your free newsletter, go to www.TheNationalNetworker.com. For the complete National Networker Relationship Capital Toolkit and a free, continuous RSS feed (available either by traditional RSS or by direct email), go to: http://thenationalnetworkerweblog.blogspot.com. You are also invited to click our buttons:
Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:
No comments:
Post a Comment