Pitch, Please! Event in New York City

Whoa. 

 

That’s my knee-jerk reaction to the last 36 hours in New York City. 

 

Let me set the scene, I am currently sitting in my cozy room at the Ace Hotel NYC sipping a glass of red wine staring at a giant stamp wall decal of an astronaut. It looks eerily similar to an ink painting I did 4 years ago, I love that. 

 

I’m typing this out as a million thoughts and feelings are whizzing around in my head. My fingers can barely keep up as they click around on the keyboard; I hope these walls aren’t too thin, I can’t imagine the clicking is too pleasant to listen to. 

 

I flew into NYC on Thursday evening, checked in, and walked to Koku for a bowl of spicy miso ramen. It was hot AF in the best possible way. I called it an early night and fell asleep after two re-runs of The Office. 

 

I woke up, did a few minutes of power-posing in front of the mirror, got an iced Stumptown vanilla latte (w/ an extra shot) and headed to Luminary.

 

I’ve been anticipating the purpose of this trip for several months; I was here to attend the 3rd iteration of Pitch, Please! led by  Susie Moore and Farnoosh Torabi. 

 

They had a long table set-up with snacks, pens, notebooks, and the cutest transparent Eames chairs in a beautifully curated working space with sliding doors.

 

I loved the energy & the environment; I instantly felt energized, inspired, and ready to absorb everything. 

 

We started with intros and our goal for publication. My goal for publication before, during, and after the event remains the same: Entrepreneur magazine.

 

After our intros, Farnoosh & Susie did a brief spiel about the benefits & how-tos on pitching for publication and/or various media outlets. I enjoyed this refresh of the content I have been learning in Susie’s self-led course, 5 Minutes to Famous.

 

At 10:30 (ps: time was flying) a surprise guest arrived; Rebecca Jarvis! She is the Chief Business, Economics and Technology Correspondent for ABC News and the host, creator and managing editor of Real Biz with Rebecca Jarvis and the podcast No Limits with Rebecca Jarvis. 

 

Hearing about her daily work schedule was inspiring and reminded me that over-working when you truly love what you do isn’t a â€œbad thing.” And, how finding a partner that is understanding and supportive of a lifestyle with an ever-changing, hectic, and chaotic schedule is key when you are an entrepreneur.

 

The fun really started when we had some time to construct and discuss our pitch ideas. I came with a list of 10 and added 8 more solid ideas. It was so productive and helpful to be able to get input and suggestions from the other women. We were able to share and tweak our headlines to make them more powerful and pitch-worthy. 

 

When the producers & executive editor panel members started to arrive and we moved into a presentation room. This was it! This was the time to really learn how to best pitch my creative content for national TV and the future of digital media! 

The panel members sat in mauve velvet stools and were so generous in sharing their tips for contacting the media and specfics on what makes a great submission.

 

Susie and Farnoosh were marvelous at firing-up conversation that inspired the panel members to really open-up, sharing tips worth gold, personal stories, and experiences. 

 

I met Libby Kane, Deputy Editor at Business Insider, Mary Grace Garis, Lifestyle Writer for Well + Good and Deanne Kaczerski Digital Executive Editor of Travel & Leisure on how to best pitch ideas and contribute guest posts.

I met Jen Doll, Contributor to The New York Times and Harper’s Bazaar, The Cut columnist Charlotte Cowles. 

I met Stacey Lastoe, Emmy-Award Winning Editor and Producer, CNN, Adriana Guzman, Senior Booking Editor at Cheddar, Kyle Scott, former NBC producer and current Head of Product & Production at Serhant Media Group, Mercedes Barba, Sr Video Producer at MONEY and George Itzhak, Producer of NBC Nightly News. 

 

Yep, I am one damn lucky gal.

 

Ending the day sipping red wine and chatting with incredible women (*ahem* Laura Belgray of Talking Shrimp) during dinner at Taralucci e Vino Union Square wasn’t too shabby either. 

 

So, you’re probably wondering why? Why did I come to NYC on a weekend sandwiched between 20+ weddings & over 50 scheduled family sessions?

 

Whelp, for 3 simple reasons;

 

But, the long-winded, reason…

 

I had a head-start in the game when I created this blog because of my photography business. I am well aware of the relentless dedication, energy, and effort required to create and upkeep a blog. I am also well aware of the benefits of being featured, published, or referenced as a quality resource by a reputable publication. 

After running HF for 18 months I was ready for more. 

 

I want my words & thoughts to be found.

 

Because I want to be heard.

 

Because I wanted to learn the best ways to put my content out in front of the eyes of millions of readers. 

 

Encouraged by the guidance of Susie Moore (after meeting her in May at my mastermind retreat in NYC) I mustered the courage to submit a personal piece to YFS Magazine. YFS Magazine, a Young, Fabulous & Self-Employed brand, is a digital magazine for startups, small business news, and modern entrepreneurial culture.

 

It was the first time I was submitting something not photography-related – it was a personal piece written to share my success story with others with the intent of inspiring other creative women to take a leap, while being honest about the hard work that it took to reach my success. 

 

Pitching takes balls. But, the more you do it, the easier it gets! 

 

Pitching takes practice but it’s important to continue to show-up and stick with the process!

 

Pitching is truly the fast-pass to furthering my success and dreams.

 

I can say with confidence, Pitch, Please! and these last 36 hours in New York will do that for me. 

 

Thank you Farnoosh & Susie for hosting this event. See you in March!

 

I say this every time I visit… but, it continues to ring true… New York, you never disappoint. 

 

I’ve first-handedly witnessed and experienced significant growth in my photography business because of my accolades, and I cannot wait to experience the same boost in success for this blog. I am so happy and grateful I was able to attend this event. 

 

I am also so grateful to have met so many incredible creative entrepreneurs! This was truly such an amazing event!!!

 

Photos by (Me) Studio 29 Photography