A couple of weekends ago, I attended (and spoke at) the Women’s Travel Fest (WTF), this year held in San Francisco.
The weekend consisted of two full days of speakers and workshops. I participated on two panels on Saturday – one on women’s travel safety and an Expedia panel focused on No Excuses. More in-depth workshops were conducted on Sunday.
To say I was flattered to be part of this amazing lineup is to put it lightly. Saturday’s speakers included award winning journalist and former North Korea captive Laura Ling, and Felicity Aston, the first and only women to ski solo across Antarctica. Just. Wow.
To say this event was powerful is putting it lightly. To have 300+ women in the San Francisco Design Center Galleria all focused on one topic, TRAVEL, was amazing. The energy was palpable. You could tell the attendees were eager to learn and be inspired by the speakers. And as a speaker, I can attest to the fact that we were equally as excited to be there.
I learned a few things during WTF:
Women Rock
I grew up with three brothers, all quite a bit older than me. That made me a bit of a tomboy and someone very comfortable being on her own. While I credit my fearlessness in travel to this upbringing (that and the fact that my Mom always said I could accomplish whatever I wanted), I didn’t exactly have a strong feminine influence in my life.
It wasn’t until I started leading women-only tours that I realized I missed out on a lot of life lessons without having sisters and also being on my own so much. During my tours with so many fab women, I’ve learned some fun facts including what a muffin top is, what Spanx are and what’s the best way to wax your eyebrows. Lessons aside, I love these tours because I have this instant sisterhood that I never had growing up.
That feeling was magnified when I walked into the Galleria at the San Francisco Design Center. I don’t know that I’ve ever walked into a room with so much energy, power and excitement. The best way to describe it was that the room was filled with a tremendous amount of sisterly energy and support. Everyone, including the organizers, attendees, speakers and vendors, were eager to share their knowledge and help each other out. There was no holding back. Yeah, ladies rock!
You Can Create, Build, Do Something From Nothing
Kelly Lewis, author of the guidebook series, Go! Girl Guides, and Mickela Mallozi (host and producer of Bare Feet, a TV series where she dances her way around the world), put together this year’s event.
While on a cross-country book tour, Kelly repeatedly got questions from women about how to travel and she noticed these women were filled with excuses of why they couldn’t travel. She was motivated to reach this community of women in a big way and launched the first WTF in New York City last year.
Kelly had a vision. She saw something lacking. And she created WTF.
Whether you apply this lesson to travel, work, art, music, a hobby or an event, it is possible to dream big and create something from nothing.
We All Need Mentors
I’ve been traveling for so long and am surrounded by so many people who either make it their business to travel or are very comfortable venturing out on their own that I forget so many women still are unsure of how to get started when it comes to travel.
The women who attended WTF were looking for information and inspiration from experienced travelers. Sure, a lot of information can be found on blogs and websites but it is still so important to make a personal connection with others. And WTF allows that to happen.
Finding a mentor, someone who can inspire and encourage you to live your dream, is so critical in accomplishing your goals. And that was in abundance at WTF.
*****
Next year’s event returns to NYC. Dates and location TBD but I highly recommend you keep this amazing festival on your radar and attend. I might even see you there!
Be Bold,
Beth
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