Pitch Perfect

 
 

Nope, not that Pitch Perfect.  And our pitch was DEFINITELY not perfect, But it was a perfect way for THE JILLS to kick off our start-up adventure...

Before we had a name, before we had a clear business model, before we had a logo, or a website, or a customer, we had an idea that we believed really mattered - women entrepreneurs needed to be lifted and linked to create a powerhouse workforce for the future.

We'd spent a summer out 'talking' to people; solopreneurs, entrepreneurs, business leaders and business owners to help us shape and validate some of our thinking. And in all of our chatting on phones and meeting in coffee shops, we learned about an opportunity - The Doyenne Group's 5X5X5 event - a pitch contest for women at the annual Madison ForwardFest. The Doyenne Group offered pre-pitch training to 5 women entrepreneurs and a chance to win a $5000 grant based on a 5 minute pitch at a breakfast event.  

We scrambled to get our application in on a tight deadline, and did cartwheels (well... metaphoric cartwheels, we're too old for any of that carry-on) when we learned we were one of the five finalists. Our adventure had begun, and we bravely stepped in, created our first pitch, stood in front of a crowd and gave our first public presentation of THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™. 

And no, we didn't win the money.  But we did win. 

JILLS cofounders  pitch finalists in Madison Forward Fest.

JILLS cofounders  pitch finalists in Madison Forward Fest.

We learned invaluable information about giving a pitch. We meet incredible women entrepreneurs who were further along than us, who shared their stories, offered us encouragement, and gave us the gift of feedback. We got mentioned in local media. We were welcomed by a community of supporters and champions of women's entrepreneurship. And we met JILLS. Lots of them. 

We learned that 5 minutes is a really short amount of time, but it's enough to put yourself out there and start to build the relationships you need to power a workforce revolution. 

SUITE SHIFTS IN HR: THE JILLS 5

Quick 5 minute reads to keep you up to date on trends, tools, and tips for the solo professional.

Hootsuite CEO, Ryan Holmes offers up some smart commentary on the growing workforce trend of building portfolio careers and cross functional teams to retain and engage great employees. The article offers some food for thought for solo professionals and how they might engage with companies on new HR approaches.

Why I Started Training Employees to Leave Their Job | Fast Company | August 25th, 2016

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iCandy Craft Brew

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When THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™ and iCandy Graphics decide to link up, the result is perfect experience of knotworking - a little food, a little learning, a little craft, and a whole lot of networking. 

Candy Phelps, owner of iCandy Graphics, shared her gorgeous office space in Madison's Atwood neighborhood for our event, and her husband, Tim Phelps, owner of SPROUT Landscaping donated materials for all of us make tiny succulent fridge magnets. While Candy gave a craft demo, she offered up SEO tips from her book Grow Your SEO to a group of eager JILLS members, who listened, chatted and put soil into teeny tiny pots for their succulents. 

New friendships were made, future coffee dates were set, lots of website revisions were considered. Candy was able to meet with potential future contractors for her business and more JILLS had an opportunity to share their talents and connect with the business community.  

A  'Crafternoon' - a great way to combine and little learning with community building

Candy Phelps instructing the group on SEO tips.

Candy Phelps instructing the group on SEO tips.

Cay's 'Grow your SEO' Book 

Cay's 'Grow your SEO' Book 

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Do the Hustle: THE JILLS 5

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Quick 5 minute reads to keep you up to date on trends, tools, and tips for the solo professional.

Who doesn’t love free tools!  Check out Lindsay Craig’s list of online apps and services created to help you run your business more effectively and efficiently. From contract services and invoicing to goal setting and content creation, Lindsay offers up a brief summary of 15 of the latest and greatest to keep you moving forward and growing your biz.

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Legal Ducks in a Row

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Remember Law & Order. That long time running prime time TV show where the stories followed crimes from the police department investigations all the way to the judge's gavel. 

For many years, my Thursday nights were punctuated with the signature Law & Order 'doink doink' sound that indicated a scene change. I loved that show. 

It's quite possible some version of the show is still running.  I've long since lost the 'free' time to stay up on prime time TV, and am more prone to TV show binges on Netflix or Amazon Prime Video, so I'm not quite sure. 

But that's not the point, anyway.

The point is, as business owners, of any scale, we all need some Law & Order. 

And no, it might not be as sexy as Chris Noth or Jesse Martin solving complicated NY city crimes, but contracts and agreements and setting up business entities matter a whole lot more. 

In our journey with THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™, we've been so fortunate to access an amazing network of resources to help set us on our path.  And our Law & Order stemmed for one of these resources - UW Madison's Law & Entrepreneurship Clinic. 

Our assigned attorney, Chris Smithka, and law student, Chuma Offor, gave our business it's foundational structure and they were our first champions. They helped us see our blind spots, they facilitated important discussions, they encouraged us, validated our thinking, and ensured we had the right footing to get up and running. 

And shucks... for that we are forever grateful. 

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Capitol Gains

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As founders of THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™, we are the lucky ones out and about talking up and spotlighting the myriad talents of the amazing women who join the THE JILLS GALLERY. We get to boast on these solopreneurs who coach, strategize, design, present, educate, build, create, and collaborate with incredible grace, integrity, and expertise. 

They make our jobs so easy. 

On this fair summer evening, we enjoyed an evening of Jazz on the rooftop of the Madison Baird office as the guests of Meg Prestigiacomo.  We connected with women of all ages and backgrounds - business leaders, political advocates, corporate CEOs, small business owners, educators, and philosophers. They were thrilled about THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™, and were eager to spread the word. They all recognized the power of linking up to lift each other higher. 

To all of the JILLS and all the future JILLS, thank you for letting us shine a spotlight on your awesomeness. 

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Freelancers Union SPARK Monthly Meet-ups

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Say... did you know that on the first Wednesday of every month the Freelancers Union hosts SPARK events in different cities across the nation?

A perfect mix of education and community, these events create opportunities for freelancers, consultants, solo professionals, and entrepreneurs to connect, share stories, and spark ideas. 

THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™ sponsors the Madison SPARK events along with 100State, Grow Madison and the Freelancers Union. 

 

 

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Women Entrepreneurs Helping Women Entrepreneurs

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In so many ways, THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™ was co-founded in celebration of women and their constant deftness at reconfiguring the work-life equation. We’re women, and our personal and professional lives have morphed so many times, and in so many directions, as our families changed, our children grew, our mother’s needed us, and as we needed our mothers. And in all the inventing and reinventing, and keeping to our core and leaning in, we have loved all its iterations. And it was from these experiences that we knew we wanted to create a platform where all women were empowered to work when they wanted, how they wanted, on their terms, and on projects that made sense to them. We didn’t necessarily set out to be entrepreneurs, but we found ourselves compelled to do what seemed right for many women.

Having established portfolio careers ourselves to try and find the balance and flexibility we sought in our own lives, we decided to turn directly into the problems we encountered in our pursuit. Using our experiences both in corporate and as independent consultants, we noticed two clear and synergists problems:

  1. Companies had a growing need to hire highly specialized consultants, freelancers and independent contractors in an on-demand, a la carte capacity, and;

  2. Many talented and highly qualified women who craved and created flexible work experiences were fragmented and ‘off radar’ to these hiring clients.

Both the independents and the companies alike, lacked efficient and effective ways to seek and find each other. For us, it was time to bridge the gap between companies and consultants and aggregate a community of independents into a one-stop shop for diverse on-demand talent. The emerging gig economy fueled our fire, as did the importantly growing voices of women demanding pay equity, leadership experiences, and work flexibility.

And THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™ was born - a community-driven platform to support and promote women entrepreneurs, consultants, freelancers, scientists, attorneys, designers and engineers and to connect businesses to a highly qualified on-demand talent pool.

Much like the way Etsy carved a community from the big-box shop of Ebay, so too does THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™ carve a niche for women in the landscape of the freelance hiring marketplace, without job-bidding, or brokering or taking fees for work engagements. Instead THE JILLS are incentivized to join to gain community, collaborative partnerships, and large-scale marketing exposure.   

As we embark on our entrepreneurial journey, we recognized the opportunity this new economy is creating, and we’re audacious enough to believe that women can lead it.

Join our journey and let’s get started. If we want to lead in this new working space, we must first link arms, lift each other up, and walk the path together so we can get out in front.

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THE FIRST JILLS

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we are the founders of THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES™ and we are on a mission to work smarter, live fuller & lift others who wish to do to the same. 

After our corporate 9-5 gigs became more grind than growth, we were convinced there was a better way to do work, find work, and get work done. We knew you could have an independent business and still feel professionally connected. We felt sure it was possible to feed our brains & fuel our hearts, without sapping our souls, without missing out on life's special moments….And still stay busy. And still make a living, while keeping a life. 

Naive? Utopia? Nope.

We're doing it here at THE JILLS OF ALL TRADES ™. Join our journey. 

Corinne and Megan

"THE LIGHT OF ONE ROW BOAT IN AN OCEAN IS HARD TO FIND. BUT LINKING MANY TOGETHER MAKES A BEAUTIFUL BEACON". 

 

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