#TBT – The Signature CEO Conference

January has been BUSY! As much as we enjoy planning and designing, it’s important that clients know that we are constantly working to be better, so that Jazmine Karess Events can serve better them. The new year is a great time for strategic planning: organizing the year, learning new apps, keeping up with industry trends, networking with the best of the best, learning business practices to be more efficient and effective, etc.

This is what helps Jazmine Karess Events evolve: Education.

A lot of the aforementioned professional development stems from knowledge I gained at The Signature C.E.O. Conference. This conference is geared towards event professionals, most of which are entrepreneurs, seeking to “level up” their businesses. Produced by Tara Melvin of the revered Perfect Planning Events, this conference hones in on leadership skills, maximizing profitability, relationship building and overall business acumen. I’ve had the pleasure of attending since 2016, before my business even had an LLC!  I’ve made wonderful connections, rubbed elbows with people I could’t have even imagined being in a room with, learned plenty about business management and of course I definitely partied. ( Hey,  planners don’t just execute great parties, we tend to be the life of them when we aren’t working! )

For TBT, I really wanted just wanted to share my pictures from the last few years, as the next conference is coming soon. But I decided to take the time to tell you guys about it too! 🙂 Please enjoy these photos and my thoughts on the past few years.

I always look forward to the Peer Panel Discussion! Every year several heavyweights in the event industry from various specialties (planner, photog, MUA, etc) sit on a panel and give us the real deal.  Do not let Instagram fool you –  Entrepreneurship is hard work! It tests you mentally, emotionally, and physically. The panelists are all successful in their own rights, actively working with amazing clients, while managing great connections and resources. But they too deal with and have dealt with some of the hardships newer business owners are facing. Attendees get to ask questions and hear answers straight from these movers and shakers. Hearing their stories, no holds barred, is truly humbling. The wisdom and encouragement gained from people who were just in the shoes of newer professionals really goes a long way. They all worked hard to get where they are now and each panel I saw offered unique perspectives on how to be successful (and stay sane). The common theme is almost always: Believe in yourself, put in the work, and DO NOT give up.

What a time! ❤

The hardest part? Walking away super inspired, encouraged, ready to take this world by storm and then realizing….I HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO!  On top of the business practices currently in place, I need to take all this advice and actually do the work needed to level up. After the last day you can’t wait to get home that night and work on every single item you learned and see the results immediately, which is not realistic. (Have I mentioned being an entrepreneur is hard yet?) That mission can sometimes feel impossible. It is not enough to just attend and be educated. Applying the education is the key to really transforming a business. You will make many friends, eat great food, but you will also learn so much.  There is some game-changing content that is provided at this conference, broken down in such tangible, digestible ways. I walk away each time with actual action items for my business, and admittedly sometimes get overwhelmed with where to start. 

But there is good news: Remember all those connections I mentioned? The other attendees are also feeling this exact same surge of energy and they too will need an accountability partner as they start crafting out how to implement everything they learned into their already established businesses. Many of us do the same work in our industry, but we do not see each other as competitors, we are a community. It always means a lot knowing that there is a network of people who want to see me win just as much as they want too. Keep up that momentum, establish that support system of accountability, take your time, and the impossible will start to feel very possible.

As you can see I always have a blast every time I attend –  Can’t wait to see what great takeaways I gather at The Signature C.E.O. Conference in March! This year is the 5th year, and the conference is three days –  Registration is still open for those who want to join me there!

Oh and did I mention you get a free head shot at the conference?!