Stepping Out Of Your Comfort Zone

Most people think I am incredibly confident but TBH the thought of attending networking events brings me out in a cold sweat 😳. Thoughts like “I won’t know what to say” and “who will I speak to” run through my head as I bury it in the sand and decline invitations to events.

Our business definitely follows the academic year. September is very much New Year Resolutions in both home and work life. So I decided to push myself out of my comfort zone when invited by @incredibusy Ali to join the Creative Women’s Event at the Rainforest Café in London I thought why not?

The time was really convenient - 11am to 2pm. So many events are at REALLY bad times for parents to attend. I can never make breakfast events or 6pm ones - when I am normally trying to be in multiple places at once dropping off at athletics/picking up from tennis, cooking dinner etc etc

I was warmly greeted by Vicki who had a huge smile on her face. I felt more relaxed straightaway. Then I saw @incredibusy and knew I was safe ha ha! It was a delight to meet Maggy who was so sweet and unassuming. These famous influencers aren’t so scary after all!

I loved hearing Annika’s (from Digital Mums) personal story of how she completed the Digital Mums course and then hassled them for a job and then became the “breadwinner” when her husband’s business collapsed suddenly. I must have had a problem with my contact lenses at that point because my eyes did get a little watery.

There were so many great tips shared by Vicky, Annika and Maggy.  I loved the tip from Maggy to try and focus on two types of social media. In the Stamptastic early days I attempted all types of social media and not only was it overwhelming but I couldn’t make any of them effective because I was spreading myself too thinly. I started concentrating on Facebook and am delighted that we now have over 70,000 followers. It’s been hard work though and lots and lots of trial and error! It’s tricky trying to make a Facebook page fun for a functional product but hopefully that’s what we have done. Still lots of room for improvement though! Recently I have really pushed my boundaries by attempting Instagram Stories. I’m definitely not a natural and do have body confidence issues but it’s a good way to interact with our followers and hopefully helps our followers realise we are not a HUGE brand but in fact just two Mums. Emma and I.

Listening to the other women speak passionately about their businesses inspired me to get my act in gear and promote our beautifully designed craft stamps which we have neglected to do over the past year. They are so stylish and functional too.

My personal faves are the Baked By Stamp,

The Lovingly Made by Stamp 

and the Stationery Stamps 

Which is yours?

There were so many interesting women in the room with the most amazing business skills. I managed to chat to a few afterwards and swapped details with lots more. Maybe some exciting collaborations will come about? Watch this space!

Photos courtesy of Laura Shimili Mears Photography

Fran Stamptastic