As 2013 continues to unfold, some clear, important success themes have emerged from our community.


Here are some of the highlights so far:

    •    Personal Brand and social media strategist Deborah Shane opened our year in January highlighting 13 Marketing Musts for 2013, focusing on content marketing via social media.

    •    Jennifer Samuel-Chance led a series of exercises to help you build the confidence to articulate your story.

    •    Entrepreneur panel with Fran Powers, Dawn Pici and Elizabeth Markie presented the best tools to connect with your audience and deliver solid, impactful content to become better presenters.


    •    Certified business coaches Barbara & Juliet Kyes outlined the top 10 strategies successful business owners use to get more out of their time and self manage their 24 hour clock.

    •    Our social media Panel with Charise Strandberg, Kim Garst and Deborah Shane talked about the latest social media trends and best practices for small business success.

    •    Author and expert Lisa Huetteman, presented best practices of value-centered leadership highlighting why creating the right culture is essential for long term business success.

    •    Our First Annual Leadership Lunch in honor of International Women’s Day brought together Tampa Bay’s top women in business for networking, leadership, building core strengths and mentorship.

Some of the questions we are tackling and working on this year are:

What does it take to sustain success?
Every one of us has to create their answer for this question. Depending on our situation and stage in life, we must create our best formula and strategy for sustaining our success.

What do I need to do every day to make sure I am advancing professionally?
Keeping up with your skills, industry information, market connections are all paramount. Keeping up with the pace of change is a daily occurrence.

How do I know when to change my course and tweak my plan?
Things change so fast that a plan we put in place may not be applicable or working. Don’t wait or procrastinate. Make changes when you know things are not working or moving in the best direction.

The course, path and professional advancement continues to unfold for women in business.

The latest State of Women-Owned Business Report by American Express Open published in 2012 provides some interesting insights into the current trends among WBEs.
    •    There are 8.3 million+ women-owned businesses in the United States
    •    WBEs are generating nearly $1.3 trillion in revenues and employing 7,697,000 people
    •    Between 1997 and 2012, women-owned firms increased 54%, 1½ times the national average of 34%

“There are many reasons to be positive. I strongly believe that the next five to 10 years will see a dramatic change for the better. Women managers can contribute to this by understanding that there are certain expectations related to organizational leadership, and developing their skills accordingly” says Professor Ginka Toegel,  in her Forbes article Disappointing Statistics, Positive Outlook.

As we continue to work on all of the areas, skills and fundamentals for success, we know that our commitment, dedication and consistency to them are what moves us forward.

Was the Dali Lama on to something, when he proclaimed “Western Women will Save the World, or will women worldwide save the world?