So last Saturday I spent the day at the UK Black Business Show and my goodness the speakers, the knowledge imparted and all the exhibiting businesses were fantastic and really inspiring. As I spent a majority of my time listening to the speakers and panels, I thought I’d share with you 4 (of the many) points that I took away from the day…
1.Bola Sol a “Personal finance Guru” came with some real gems when it comes to finances and generational wealth . I genuinely thought I had my finances in check until she made me realise I was doing the bare minimum. She spoke about doing your research when it comes to saving accounts and interest rates, investing in stocks and fixed income bonds, and really questioned what we really spend most of out salaries on. Let’s just say by the time she was finished I’d come to the hard realisation that the Gucci camera bag and Alexander McQueen sneakers I’ve been fantasising about purchasing were no longer on my radar…smh. Also a little public announcement – The chance to apply for Help to buy ISA’s ends 30th of November, don’t miss out peeps.
2. Dwain Reid gave a talk on “How to Network like a Boss” which was a must attend for me, as networking is definitely not one of my strong points. He mentioned the importance of having a Linkedin account (which I’m still yet to set up for myself…tut tut Chloé) and updating it at least once every 2 weeks if you run a business. He also emphasised that networking shouldn’t be about selling, finding people like us, or a rapid business card exchange and with effective networking the first priority is to arrange a meeting. He closed with the strong reminder that “You’re never too small to talk to someone”.
3. Kubi Springer.This woman is literally a queen when it comes to branding. I’ll keep this one short and sweet as a lot of what she said was from her book “I am my brand” which I’ve purchased but am yet to read. She discussed 8 essential pillars for building a brand, and read a heartfelt excerpt from her book reminding us: A. That life can throw the biggest curveballs at us but we must push through and come out the other end stronger B. That we can’t do this life/business journey alone and need to connect with others , and C. You can’t have a personal brand until you have first built the person.
“Success is a choice NOT a guarantee – Kubi Springer”
4. David and Madeline McQueen are a comedic duo that came to talk straight facts about when it comes to building a business, and at someone at the very beginning of that journey; it was a much needed reality check. They spoke about business ideas, ensuring you learn how to market your business properly and fully understanding business finance…basically your girls got a lot of work and research to do. They also promoted a new programme they’ll be launching called dream, hustle , build for budding entrepreneurs. One thing that was mentioned that really resonated with me was was “We haven’t got time for imposter syndrome”…
Well I hope you enjoyed the read. A simple google search of any of the mentioned speakers will give you much more information about them. I’d highly recommend the UK Black Business Show to anyone with an inkling of interest in business or if you just want to see the range of black owned businesses there are available.
Until next time…
Love
CJ x
Great post! Thanks for the tip about help to buy ISA’S! xxx
Thanks girl x