Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend!

As I posted on Friday, I  attended BlogHer on Saturday in my hometown of New York City.  Due to my work schedule I wasn’t able to attend the whole conference, so I only went for the day.   I first heard of BlogHer from the CurvyCEO back in early June.  I went to their  website and was immediately drawn to the conference.  This was my first going to a blogger conference and  it was completely worth it.    Almost every kind  of  blogger from food to parenting was represented. It was so empowering to be around thousands (yes I said thousands!) of  smart and creative  women. While the conference is huge, I never felt lost or disconnected.  There was always someone to say “hi” and ask you about yourself and your blog.   My usual shyness  evaporated and I became more open and engaging.  Although I went solo, by the end of the night I had met a  group of women that I connected with and were a great to be around.

The sessions I went to mainly focused on the technical side of blogging, an area I needed ALOT of assistance with.  My sessions with Erica Mueller and Cindy Melzer were  very  helpful and  informative.  These women are so tech savvy and extremely knowledgeable about their area of expertise.  I walked away feeling more educated and respectful of the technical aspects of  blogging.

In the afternoon  the lunch keynote featured Katie Couric.  I’ve always liked Katie Couric because she seems to be very intelligent and focused. The  format was a one on one interview with BlogHer co-founder Lisa Stone and not a lecture. Ms. Couric was very relaxed and  at ease with the audience.   The keynote was interactive as the audience was encouraged to tweet questions for Ms. Couric that she answered during her interview.   Also in the afternoon Soledad O’Brien, Christy Turlington Burns and Malaak Compton-Rock spoke about  their various philanthropic organizations and about the importance of giving back.  I was thoroughly impressed by these women.  They are very committed to changing the lives of people not just by giving money but by being active and involved in the community.  It made me think of the ways I could be giving back and being an agent for change in my community.

Soledad O’Brien

I’m splitting my post into two parts because if I didn’t this would be the longest post in the world!

So stay tuned for part 2!