The Root continued their multi-city series, Young, Fabulous and Female event in NYC last week Wednesday with a night of conversation about black women and they challenges that their are facing. Sponsored by Pepsi We Inspire, the event was held at the Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theater and was attended by over 200 women (and a few men). Jacque Reid, co-host of KISS-FM’s The D.L. Hughley Morning show, moderated the panel discussion with a great panel line-up: Tracey Ferguson, editor-in-chief of Jones Magazine and star of Centric TV’s reality show, Keeping Up with the Joneses; Lois Samuels, model and fashion designer; Edwina Findley, actress (Tremé); Donna Byrd, publisher of The Root; Raina Kelley, Newsweek staff writer; and Harriette Cole, president of Harriett Cole Media.

The conversation start off with a bang with what women and men really thought about rapper Slim Thug’s recent comments of black women in an interview. The rest of the discussion focused on theme of sisterhood, mentorship, balancing work/life issues, learning more about yourself and ways of how we can grow as women. The overall take away message was that the being fabulous is not about the clothes you wear or the shoes you rock but about being yourself. We have to love who we are and don’t letting anyone stop our goals. It’s okay to be scared, used that fear to start a plan where you want to be. A good tip about going after new opportunities was that you have to be willing to volunteer. Not everyone has the time to be a mentor. Avoid asking someone to go to lunch, ask to have coffee. There was tons of discussion going on online via the Twitter hashtag #youngfab.

All women can apply the advice given that night. It was such an empowering experience and would love to attend one again. Final words to remember: “We are responsible for the image we put out. We can change the way media see us.” and “Believe in the power of speaking things into existence”. I would like to thank The Root and Pepsi We Inspire for a great evening, Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theater for a beautiful venue and all of the successful and fabulous ladies of the panel.

Photo by LaVelle Finerson

Thinking of joining forces?  Nina Kaufman, of “Ask the Business Lawyer,” has developed a workshop on business partnerships and is holding a preview teleseminar tomorrow, Tuesday, October 6th at 800 PM.Visit Entrepreneurial Prenup for information and registration.

Hang up those beach towels and let’s get back to work!

•  The BOC Women’s Business Center is holding its fifth annual “21st Century Business Woman” conference on September 10th in Staten Island.  For more information, click here.
• The American Business Woman’s Association is holding a number of events in September.  On September 15th, there’s a neat-looking conference about building your business - “Building a Business You can Sell.”  Click here for the complete calendar of events.
• On September 16th,  NYC Small Business Services  is holding a workshop targeted to Latina-run businesses, about selling your services/products to the government.  Click here for more information.

Have a productive Fall!

Looks interesting.  Wonder if there’s a future podcast or something on-line?Social Media Workshop for Women

Wednesday night I attended The Runway Project’s brainstorming session that brought together a group of independent workers for a discussion about how to determine your prices. As a person who is just starting out on my own this is the biggest challenge I am dealing with.

Here is what I learn:

• You must have a vision of where you want to go and how you going to get there.
• Know what your cost of living is. Also make sure you have at least 6-8 of living expenses to live off just in case you hit a dry spell. Knowing how much you need on a month-to-month basis would allow you to assess what your minimum rate should be.
• Be honest about what you are good at and what you can accomplish in the allocated time.
• Don’t devalue your own services. Giving away your services pass the point the point of building your portfolio will bring down you value. Also doing work for next to nothing will not only hurt your bottom line but your business won’t be able to survive.
• Think about other things that you can do in between projects that can bring in additional income.
• When it comes to discussing price with a client, allow them to tell you what they can afford or what they are expecting to pay for your services. Your rates shouldn’t be the first thing discussed.
• Doing a job for free? Presents client with an invoices with the balance of zero, but include the lines items to show the worth of your services.

Cool Quotes:

“A friend of mine applies the ‘bitch’ factor.” When a client is a particular pain, she pads the numbers in anticipation of fickleness.

Regarding potential clients who lowball you: “There has to be a point where you just say f*** you.”

Brainstorm: Factors to Consider When Determining Your Price
The Runway Project
Twitter: @runwayproject

This event was hosted by the good folks of New Work City, a community coworking space in NYC. For more info please check out or their twitter page at @nwc.

Related Posts:
Stepping Out on My Own: The Chronicles of a First-Time Entrepreneur

On Wednesday, June 3rd, there’s a cool afternoon talk, Womenomics, It’s about women and management at the 92Y Tribeca,  featuring authors Claire Shipman and Katty Kay.

Join a discussion that examines how women’s management style is ideally suited to the new business world and how women can have more time and freedom in their jobs without falling off the professional ladder. In their new book Womenomics: Write Your Own Rules for Success, veteran journalists Claire Shipman and Katty Kay show professional women how they can redefine success, be more productive and find jobs that don’t require an all-or-nothing lifestyle.

92YTribeca
200 Hudson Street
Wed, Jun 3, 2009, 12:00pm-1:00pm
Price: $16