Okay I am doing this in reverse order…I actually attended the National Speakers Association Conference right before I went to BlogHer and I can’t stress how amazing my experience was. First, I got to reconnect with two women I already knew: Francine Ward, who I met when I worked at Mode. She’s an NSA board member, attorney and author of the amazing book Esteemable Acts:10 Actions for Building Real Self-Esteem and Valorie Burton who used to pen a column for me when I was the editor in chief of Heart & Soul (the two of us are pictured above). It was Valorie’s first conference and she was one of the speakers who participated in “The Real Rally.” It was sort of like the BlogHer Community Keynote but everyone was an accomplished speaker but they had to get their message across in 20 minutes. Valorie is all about empowering women with the practical tools they need to succeed. She’s written a number of books including How Did I Get So Busy? The 28-Day Plan to Free Your Time, Reclaim Your Schedule and Reconnect with What Matters Most.
Secondly, I met so many amazing people who were willing to share their knowledge. Finally, I got a chance to learn some amazing techniques from the best speakers in the world. This was a great opportunity to hone my craft and I would definitely attend the conference again.