I am delighted to announce the launch of the Athena Black Country regional website which is going to be an added benefit for Athena members as well as raising the profile of women in business for the area.

The website will include articles, members profiles and event details for the Black Country and prove to be a practical resource for local ladies.

Please check out the website at www.athenablackcountry.com and I would love your feedback.

On sorting out the changeover to a new website hosting company, I decided to have a look for a new theme for the blog - what do you think to the new look?

I love it as it completely represents what networking and Athena represents - bubbles for continued conversations, pink and silver are the colours for Athena and aerial narrow is the standard font we use!

Would love your comments.

July and August tend to be quiet times in networking circles because of holidays but we still want valuable events for members and visitors to connect and do business.

At Athena, we don’t hold meetings in August and choose to have a regional event in August bringing together the groups in the region.  This year is my first time for a regional meeting and I am looking forward to merging Hagley and Wolverhampton for an extra special meeting.

Date & Time: Thursday 17th July 2008 (12 - 2pm)

Venue: Four Stones Restaurant, Clent

Want to come along to this special event, please contact me.

Cappuccino Connections are proving very popular with Black Country businesswomen who like the informal networking opportunity over a coffee and I have decided to add another group for Wolverhampton.

I need to find a great coffee shop which has the capacity for 20 - 30 extra customers but also has free parking.

I would love your suggestions as I want to launch this new group in August to ensure that local ladies have valuable networking opportunities during August.

At the last Cappuccino Connections event in June, the experience at Costa Coffee was not what you would call very friendly - they had an extra 22 customers and we were asked to leave at 11.50am!

There were a few issues on that occasion and I decided to look for a new venue at Merry Hill who would happily accommodate us.

I am delighted to say that our new venue for Cappuccino Connections from July will be Coffee Lounge (upper mall next to TK Max and Next) and will let you know how we get on.

Volunteering can be a very good way to raise your profile in your local business community and target market - I try to practice what I preach and volunteer wherever possible.

From yesterday, I am now the Secretary for Dudley & District Business Club with a membership of approximately 70 members who I am going to be in regular contact with - this means my name and expertise is going to be in front of another 70 people all for volunteering my time!

Are there any networking groups in your area who could benefit from your expertise?  Contact the organiser as they are always crying out for good support.

On Saturday I attended the National VA Conference in Milton Keynes which brought together almost 100 virtual assistants from across the UK and Ireland.

This was a great event which proved extremely motivating and inspirational to be surrounded by like minded people who love the same industry as me.  Before attending this event I was always a little unsure as to the benefits of networking with your peers but I do urge everyone to do as you will benefit.

What events happen for your industry that you can make the effort and attend?  let me know how you get on.

I am delighted to say that I have been selected as the networking guru for the VA Times magazine, a quarterly magazine for virtual assistants.

I am delighted to be able to help fellow virtual assistants with my knowledge and am looking forward to contributing to future issues.

Emma Walker
Athena Network Goddess - in training

I was delivering the networking module for a training course over the weekend and we were discussing the do’s and don’ts of networking when a new term was coined - a clingon. 

For those of you who don’t know, this is somone who sticks to you like glue at an event and doesn’t leave your side or take the opportunity to meet more great people - not a very attractive prospect!

Have a think about you networking activities recently - are you a clingon?  If so, prepare in advance fo events so that you feel more confident to approach new people.

Emma Walker
Athena Network Goddess - in training

I have mentioned before about the importance of a Championship Team and I am delighted to announce that today I have added to my team!

Trina Lamarche is going to be my Virtual Assistant helping me to focus on the money making activities for my business.  So from March, I now have a Virtual Assistant, cleaner, gardener and child care provider.

Until next time,

Emma Walker
Athena Network Goddess - in training