Blogalicious Conference: Good For Business, Good For The Soul

10.15.13

I attended the 5th anniversary of the Blogalicious conference on October 3-5, 2013 in Atlanta. To say it was life-changing is an understatement. Our adventure started a week before the conference started when the title sponsor, Kia Motors, sponsored a vehicle for my husband and I to take on a road trip to Blogalicious.

We were grateful to receive a beautiful Abyss Blue 2014 Kia Forte. This EX model was equipped with all the bells and whistles. The ones that stood out for me were the seat warming & cooling feature, steering wheel warmer, Garmin navigation along with great dashboard features, Sirius satellite radio, amazing steering wheel equipped with every button imaginable. To see the amazing features, and check out the Kia Forte for yourself, please click here.

From New Haven, CT we set out to Atlanta. It was a very comfortable ride, not to mention the amazing gas mileage at 37 MPG on the highway. We hardly stopped to fill up and the indicator on the dashboard let us know how many miles remained in the gas tank. Purposefully, we stopped on our way to Atlanta and it ended up feeling like a mini vacation before Blogalicious even started with some fun surprises along the way.

Highlights:

Charlotte, NC – I had never spent much time in Charlotte before but hubby and I enjoyed the downtown feel, wonderful restaurants. Shout out to Mert’s soul food, which was wonderful and had the best cornbread I’ve ever tasted. Thank you to Priceline’s mobile app where I lucked out with a top room at the downtown Hilton for $80.00.

Greenville, SC – This town was never on my radar but since it was halfway between Charlotte and Atlanta, Hubby took me there. Boy was I in for a treat. First off the moment we arrived in Greenville, we ran into Sanjay Gupta of CNN doing a live broadcast. He was very nice and even took pictures with us.

Greenville was extremely peaceful, friendly and eco-conscious. Not to mention the BBQ was to die for. After staying in the Hyatt Regency in downtown Greenville, we were back on the road.

Destination: Blogalicious5!

Blogalicious was amazing. Here are my top highlights from the 2013 conference.

OnePercenter’s Breakfast and VIP access to the speakers – As a 1% (meaning I have attended every single Blogalicious since the first one in 2009) Stacey and her team provided us a special breakfast reception which was a reunion with good friends, manicures and great food. It was a great experience and I felt special right from the start of the conference. If that wasn’t enough, we also had VIP access to our keynote speakers. My favorite was meeting Amy DuBois Barnett. She was warm, candid, and gave me great advice.

Amy DuBois Barnett’s keynote address – I thoroughly enjoyed hearing Amy speak on her struggles with finding her voice and purpose, her career highs and lows, and her advice for us the content creators and the responsibility we have to be authentic….always.

McDonald’s Jam – They did not disappoint and had a DJ that was on fire with the 80’s and 90’s hits. Everyone was in the 80’s spirit and we all danced our butts off.
Harriet Cole (Elevator Pitch Workshop) – This workshop was intense, emotional, fun, and soul opening. Harriet is a force! She pinpointed what I had to change and helped me carve out my voice. I’m starting to implement her recommendations and it feels authentic and groundbreaking. Thank you Harriet!
My first panel appearance and e-guide! – I had the distinct honor to give back to the Blogalicious attendees with my panel: “Before you take the leap: blogging and working your 9-5.” Aliah Davis-McHenry, Denise Johnson and I did a killer panel filled with tips and tricks to build your blogging empire while working. It was exciting and I’m so grateful for the thoughtful questions from the group. I feel we connected and I can’t wait to contribute this way again.

In addition, I gave birth to my first ever e-guide, “Career Strategy for Bloggers.” This e-guide is 30 pages of concrete, practical career help & worksheets designed specifically for bloggers, including best jobs for bloggers, how to include blogging skills on your resume and more. If you are a blogger and don’t know how to incorporate your blogging into a 9-5 or are looking for jobs that cater to your blogging skills you need this e-guide.

I had the pleasure of seeing old friends in Atlanta and making new ones. I can’t wait to collaborate with many of you. Thank you Blogalicious for another great conference! I can’t wait for Blogalicious6 and another adventure.