The Yellow Conference is officially over and it. was. amazing. The air was buzzing with the energy and positivity of our amazing attendees. What an inspiring group of women.
As mentioned in our last post, at Yellow Conference this year, we launched our brand new membership platform, The Yellow Collective! Launching the Yellow Collective has been nothing short of a DREAM. It’s so exciting to see so many badass creatives wanting to join this community.
But before the conference , there were the original brave and bold ladies willing to step into this experiment with us and soak it all in. We call them our beta group — and since they’ve been apart of the Collective from the beginning, we wanted to hear their stories and let them share what they’ve learned from this growing group of women!
Amy Garner , a stylist for Stella & Dot and original Yellow Collective lady, was struggling to find other women her age that share her entrepreneurial mindset — something that can be difficult to find as a work-from-home freelancer! She recently told us that she feels The Yellow Collective has become the community of creative women she was searching for. ”I’m a firm believer that we should never settle and always be learning — learning more about ourselves, each other, and the world we live in,” she said.
“This is definitely a community that has fostered that ideal…we can learn from each other and grow together as individuals and a community.“
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We soon found that other members had similar struggles! Sara Fitzgerald , a graphic designer in Iowa (who we lovingly refer to as “the creative in the corn fields”) couldn’t attend the in-person meet-ups due to her location, but refers to The Yellow Collective as her “ lifeline to other creative women making a difference in the world”. She told us, “I love hearing the insight, inspiration and passions of these women. It’s nice to know there are other women striving to make a difference and willing to lean on each other for support, growth and laughter!“ As entrepreneurs, it can be a struggle to let on that there even IS a struggle!
There’s a constant pressure to seem like we have it all together, that we’ve figured it out, but our goal as a Collective is to offer women a place to share what’s actually going on in their lives and find collaboration and care from their local creative community.
You all know the drill — collaboration over competition. We want to promote realness every step of the way! 
Shaya Rees , an administrative assistant at the Jessie Rees Foundation and one of the most motivated young creatives we’ve met, expressed wanting a community where she could be open and honest. ” The Yellow Collective has been the greatest blessing in my life lately,” she said. “I have an incredible group of women who encourage me, push me, teach me, and share their wisdom. It’s a place where I feel safe and know that I can be vulnerable…They teach me to be myself, trust the path that I am on, and never stop pursing [my] dreams!” While there’s nothing wrong with networking events and passing around business cards to new potential colleagues, Cassidy Perry, a social media coach and web manager told us that the Collective has been a “wonderful and delightful surprise” that didn’t fit the traditional networking model. ”What I found was genuinely caring young women who care about helping each other grow in all areas of life and business,” she said. 
“This is truly a unique group of women who don’t just talk about supporting each other but truly show up and are there for each other…I’ve gained confidence that business can be done with vulnerability and kindness. You don’t have to be cutthroat to succeed. “ It makes us SO ecstatic to see Yellow Collective ladies feeling safe and encouraged within this growing group of awesome women. Even though it can be hard to step out and share your gifts with others, Collective member Zantika Ellis reminded us that it’s SO worth it. “I’ve learned to step out of my comfort zone and to be okay with the anxiety that comes with doing so,” she said. Here were a few other tidbits that members felt were highlights of the past couple quarters! 
The Quarterly Empowerment Box: Sara Fitzgerald (remember — “the creative in the cornfields”) let us know how much joy her box brought her! She shared, “That box was like a ray of sunshine sitting on my porch, full of things to inspire, resources and wisdom!” Exclusive Online Content: A few weeks back, we had the honor of hosting an exclusive members-only Q&A with Lindsey Eryn Clark who founded Wild Hearts Wknd (one of our faves)! “The entrepreneur chat was amazing,” said social media and web expert Cassidy Perry . “She had so much simple wisdom and a down-to-earth approach to work and life. Plus I LOVED that both our hosts weren’t made up [with hair and makeup]…Most people are afraid that if they don’t look perfect, no one will take them seriously, but within 30 seconds of these two women speaking on business and valor, I knew I was listening to some truly brilliant people.” Slack Chats: Every Wednesday evening, we host a Slack Chat on a different topic! We’ve discussed creativity, vulnerability, boundaries — you name it! No matter where our members are, the chats offer a place to connect on a regular basis! “I’ve gained a strong sense of community from our weekly Slack Chats as we shower each other with encouragement, wisdom, and tools to utilize in our everyday lives,” shared Britney Clark , a speaker and financial professional. “I’ve learned we’re all connected in some way.” 
**Access to the Yellow Team & other awesome women: ** Marissa Rascon , the awesome lady who made our Yellow Collective promo video that aired at conference, shared the highlight of her membership. “My favorite part was learning from real-life entrepreneurs and spending time with Joanna and the Yellow team,” she said. “I gained a tribe of badass business-minded babes who are hilarious, humble and kind.” 
WANT MORE INFO? HOP ON OUR INTEREST LIST
Thanks to ALL the awesome Yellow Collective ladies who spent the time sharing their feedback with us about how the Collective has affected them thus far! If you’re interested in signing up or want more info, head to yellowcollective.co or shoot us an e-mail at collective@yellowco.co!
We hope to see you become a Yellow Collective lady SOON!
Photos by the amazing Caca Santoro.
