I Sold Out My Event. Here's What Three Years of "How Hard Could It Be?" Taught Me.

Three years ago, I started an event because I couldn't find the one I actually wanted to go to.

I was looking for a fun, all-female networking event I'd walk away from with something real. What I found instead was an hour away, on a Tuesday at noon, very bro-coded, or a shopping experience wearing a networking event's name tag.

I was willing to spend money. Just not on any of that.

So I figured I'd host my own. How hard could it be?

Turns out: very.

It Felt Like Planning My Wedding Again

When I got married, I told my husband I'd be crying tears of joy walking down the aisle — not because I was marrying him, but because the wedding planning would finally be over. (Don't worry. He knew exactly what he was getting.)

Planning that first event felt the same way.

I built it exactly how I'd want it if I were the one walking in as a guest, and figured I'd treat it as a first draft — something I'd adjust every year based on what people actually told me afterward.

That first event was a true live-and-learn situation.

Turns Out I Wasn't the Only One Looking

Here's the wild part: most of the women who showed up had been looking for this exact thing too.

Every year since, there have been adjustments. Small tweaks, bigger overhauls, lessons from feedback I didn't expect. But the core has never moved: women building community with other women.

It sounds almost too simple when I write it out like that. But simple isn't the same as easy, and it's definitely not the same as common.

The Fire, Not the Finish Line

I know every woman who walks into this room will leave with a fire under her. What she does with it after that is up to her — that's always been the deal.

But I've watched the growth. In the women who keep coming back. In myself. And my goal isn't to keep this event exactly the way it is — it's to keep evolving it alongside the women who show up for it.

Year Three

This year sold out.

I know every woman in that room is going to be there for a reason. And I genuinely cannot wait to feel the energy when we're all in it together.

Your turn: If you've been to an event that stuck with you, I want to hear about it.

• What was a small touch that felt incredibly thoughtful?

• What's the most powerful thing you've ever heard someone say at one?

• What's one action you took at or after an event that actually moved the needle on your growth?

Drop it in the comments — I read every single one.