Women Empowering Women - YES - Love that

Last Friday I went to join with a new network, something I was always involved in when I had the boutique but was only attending sporadically since closing, it was a network of women who decided it was high time we came together and empower each other. Hosted in the Yoga Room in Ratoath by the lovely June Crawley and Bee Flanagan, I entered the room knowing some of the people but wanting to make it my mission over the evening to speak to people I did not know.

We always feel comfortable in our own surroundings and with people we know but last Friday I decided to step out of the comfort zone a little knowing I was in a very safe environment. The first person I spoke with after saying hello to the usual suspects was Edel O'Malley a photographer who was lovely. I spoke with her a little about the type of photography she does and it is mainly wedding and portraits but we spoke about the fact that I style photo shoots on occasion and it is always good to have someone in mind so I delightfully took her card.

Feeling a little more comfortable on my quest to speak to new people I noticed another lady had come in and she was in Insurance and then another in accounting and so on and so on. Speaking with people who are craft orientated and doing sales for smaller companies to make-up artists to people who produce soap, own fitness studios, hairdressing, boutiques and even some former and current politicians to the mix. All in all a great bunch of women empowering each other to be the best they can be and support one another and local business, all the things I love to see.

Bee Flanagan opened the proceedings by all of introducing ourselves and what we do at this point I felt more than a little out of my comfort zone..... what do I say ..... I don't have my product yet and how would I define myself. I was listening to everyone say who they were and what they did I began to feel very comfortable with these women they all wanted something similar to what I wanted from the group and happy to tell people what they did. Empowered, when it came to my turn I stated my wants from the group and told them I had a boutique in the village, since closed, I still do some fashion writing and styling and currently on the crest of my wave of going forward with a new business. I left them dangling a little on that and fingers crossed all will be revealed soon.

Then Bee introduced herself and while I was familiar with her What Will Be With Bee I delighted to learn more about her PALS Programme a really empowering programme and great to see that corporate bodies have picked up on it too. Just as it was getting into the part with all the showcases of the businesses I had to leave to drop my nephew over to his friends house for overnight stay, life just sometimes takes over. So I was sorry to miss the remainder of the meeting and am really looking forward to the next one.

One thing I can say is get involved in your local group, get together with like minded people who want to move things forward and support each other you never know where it will lead too. Check out the list below for some of the great businesses who all have a woman driving them forward.

Simply Healing  http://simplyhealing.ie/
Antonia Gavin Hair Co. https://www.facebook.com/pages/AntoniaGavinHairCo/231420646903601
Time Capture https://www.facebook.com/TimeCaptureHandCraftedGifts
Tiaras and Wellie's https://www.facebook.com/tiarasandwellies
Forever Amber https://www.facebook.com/pages/Forever-Amber/387374184668669
Craft Cottage http://www.craftcottage.ie/
Carries First Step Fitness https://www.facebook.com/CarriesFisrtStepFitness
OBK Accountants http://www.obk.ie/
The Fitness Factory http://www.fitnessfactory.ie/index.html
The Yoga Rooms http://yogaroom.ie/hatha_yoga.html
Yoga Room Santuary https://www.facebook.com/theyogaroomsanctuaryratoath
Blondelles www.blondelles.ie
Lorna Flood Fitness https://www.facebook.com/lorna.floodfitness?fref=ts
What Will Be With Bee www.whatwillbewithbee.ie 

This is just a sample so much more.