It’s fitting that all things SGIA Expo should go out with a bang, and the Women in Print Alliance Breakfast was no exception. We did lose a few people to sleeping in after the epic Expo farewell party at TAO the night before, but we still managed to pack 150 women in bright and early Friday morning.
In a male-dominated industry, it’s difficult for women to feel like they belong. At the Women in Print Alliance Breakfast, however, each and every individual in attendance felt welcome, learning and sharing with other impactful women in the industry.
Kathy Korman Frey expertly navigated the room while facilitating connections between the attendees. She asked us to turn to the person next to us (as long as it was someone we didn’t already know), and share goals that were deeper than just our day-to-day work lives. For example, maybe our goal was to be a CEO one day (side note on this: two-thirds of female CEOs today never considered becoming a CEO or even seeing that as a feasible career goal, until someone else mentioned it to them!).
Then our partner gave us feedback on how they thought we might make our goals into a reality. I walked away knowing a woman who had an aggressive plan to pay off all of her credit cards and mortgage in the next 14 months! I also had the opportunity to talk to a confident young woman who has a future in local, or maybe national politics.
Kathy brought a necessary level of energy that morning, pairing engaging activities and funny banter with incredible facts and figures that stimulate your mind. But above all of that, she introduced the women in the printing industry to one another and allowed us to realize what a diverse, interesting, smart and powerful group of women we are.
I’d love to invite Kathy back next year, or maybe we’ll have her drop in on some webinars throughout the year. But keep your eyes peeled for a broader program in 2019 with PRINTING United. It’s our time to shine, and at SGIA, our Women in Print Alliance will continue to make efforts to broaden our horizons.