Now, you’ve most likely heard of Jenna Kutcher, who was the keynote speaker at this year’s Camp Climb. If the name doesn’t ring a bell, she is a badass 30-year old business woman who has built an online empire selling creative entrepreneurs courses in Instagram, email list building, and Pinterest. She also has a very well known podcast, The Goal Digger.
As I said, this year was the first year of Camp Climb and once I heard Jenna Kutcher was going to be there I signed up! Little did I know (and to be honest, I don’t think most of the attendees knew) we would actually be camping…
The weekend conference was held at a girl scouts camp in the middle of nowhere Iowa and ran from Friday afternoon to Sunday morning. The attendees were broken up into three different groups — base, tent, and peak — and you selected a level based on where you were in your business. I went as a peak camper.
Here are some takeaways from the weekend:
Pros:
- I went horseback riding and canoeing for the first time since I was ten years old;
- I reconnected with a girl from my freshman floor who now owns a branding and web design agency;
- Meeting some really incredible badass lady bosses;
- Unplugging. There was literally no cell reception. It was great and a little stressful. I also think that was longest I’ve ever gone without talking to my husband — I missed him <3;
- I went with two other amazing women, Jen Haywood and Madison Fichtl, and we all walked away with clear steps we needed to take in our business; and
- Jenna Kutcher
Cons:
- The different levels of campers weren’t clear, so there was a little bit of everything in each. As a peak camper, I expected to be with women who had been in business for a while and who were KILLING it. There were definitely some who were at the level, but there were also people who hadn’t even started a business yet;
- There wasn’t much planned for the peak campers, and the one thing they did have planned they didn’t tell us about. We literally had hours of time where we had nothing to do while the rest of the levels had specific workshops to attend. The one thing they did have planned for us was a surprise Q&A with Jenna Kutcher, but no one told us about it. When Jenna showed up to the lake, most of us thought she was wanting to get away from the hustle and bustle so we tried to give her space and most of us went canoeing. Little did we know, it was supposed to be a Q&A session with her… I was not only bummed when we were told this later. I also felt awful because we all had basically ignored her!
- Besides Jenna Kutcher, I didn’t get a lot out of the other speakers — most of whom were younger than me… I mean I’m only 30 😉 I am a HUGE believer that you shouldn’t take advice from someone who hasn’t accomplished what you are after, so I wish they had some more experienced speakers. At the very least, it would have been nice to have them as a separate workshop for the peak campers.
Jenna Kutcher:
- She is a powerhouse! But she is also a totally regular woman dealing with all of the same shit as her listeners, students, and everyone attending the conference;
- Not only was she there for her keynote speech, but she also hung out all weekend and was completely accessible to attendees. I think I talked to her for like an hour one day;
- She shared that yes there are pros to being “Insta-famous”, but there are also cons including her friend circle getting a lot smaller; and
- She is even more honest and open in-person!
Biggest Takeaways:
- The two things female entrepreneurs struggle with the most are confidence and mindset — even Jenna Kutcher! Once we realized no one has their shit together all the time, we also realized we are doing a pretty damn good job at this thing called life!
- There were lots of different opinions about whether or not to incorporate or express our religious and political beliefs into our businesses. My thought: do what works for you. Here and at Advisori everyone is welcome!
- I really want to join a high-level mastermind next year 🙂
Overall for being the first year of the event, I think the event was well done.
Will I go back next year? TBD. Honestly, I’d love to be a speaker or host a workshop. One thing is for sure though — If I do go back, I’ll be bringing a foam mattress and earplugs!
