:: I’m coming up on one year as a WIC member and as a marketing consultant. So I thought the “newbie” perspective might be worth sharing to others looking to WIC as a support for a new venture. But I also want to send out a sincere thank you to all of the WIC pros that helped me better understand what I have to offer and how I’ll break through. Every single member I met in person or virtually took the time to listen, offer perspective and make me feel welcome.
I came to WIC with a direct referral from a long standing member, Noel Adams of ClearWorks. I tell everyone what she told me, “If you are considering consulting, then you have to join WIC.” I signed up the very week as my transition from corporate job to consulting was a bit impromptu. While I’ve been to several excellent meetings and volunteered on the blog, it is the steady cadence of on-topic and off-topic emails that has been truly enlightening. It shows the power of the WIC network in action offering a trusted referral on just about any topic on a daily basis. Life and business distilled into one steady stream.
Since every person’s story is different, I thought another newbie perspective was appropriate. So of course I used the listserv to find other new members.
Here’s what Vivianne Hiriart of VHR Qual Research got from her first foray with WIC:
I joined WIC less than a year ago and so far it’s been a great experience. Attending some Satellite and General Meetings has been of great value. Each time I leave with new information and learn from different approaches and points of view. Sandra Clark’s great presentation gave a better picture of the power of a good LinkedIn profile and all the details one tends to overlook. And Marie Perruchet’s tips to work on a perfect pitch were very useful and great food for thought. But one of the most valuable parts has been meeting and connecting many interesting and smart women. As a domino effect, this led to more new connections with people in and out the organization and, with that, new collaboration opportunities. With no doubt, becoming part of the WIC community has been a good decision!
So here’s to another year for me; and more great first years for those stepping up and out in 2018.
