There are 2 things I love about any event Ali Brown hosts. You always leave the room thinking even bigger than you did when you walked in, and you meet and make lasting connections with the most amazing trail blazers, thought leaders, and game changers while you are there.
I first met Ali in 2011 when I heard her speak at the Simmons Women's Leadership Conference and have been to numerous events she has hosted since, from SHINE back in the day, to her more recent ICONIC events, to other boutique offerings mixed in.
I have left every event grateful that I attended and this year's ICONIC was no exception.
Ali creates a container for personal and business transformation at her events and attracts a caliber of generous, giving, brilliant, and supportive women powerhouses like no other.
She encourages you to not only think bigger but to think different, to create your own rules, to disrupt and make a massive impact in your industry and in the world. She helps you step into your ICONIC work.
Here were some of the quotes, takeaways, and themes from this year's event.
Quotes and Words of Wisdom Shared by Ali
- “Making space will always lead you in the right direction.”
- “Tap back into the purpose and power of what you’re doing.”
- “What if half the things we’ve been doing are unnecessary?”
- “There is no new normal. There will be ongoing NO normal.”
- “There’s too much ‘how to’ and not enough ‘what if’.”
- “Amazing things happen in rooms like this.”
- “What if it’s easier than we think?”
- “Purposeful positioning will lead to purposeful perception.”
- “It’s not about taking something else on, it’s about letting things go.”
- “What are you willing to give up to become who you want to be?”
- “You need a position, not just an opinion.”
Quotes and Words of Wisdom Shared by Other Attendees
- “There is nothing in the world that isn’t possible for me.” Myoshia Boyken-Anderson
- “Give up the illusion of control in someone else’s system.” Dr. Sunny Smith
- “Goals are not the goals. Goals are the vehicle to get us to the life we want.” Tanya Dalton
- “Your comfort zone is not where you’re going to make the impact you want to make.” Sarah Beth Aubrey
- “Trust your inner guidance and magic will happen.” Baeth Davis
- "I am the mother of a movement." Dr. Valerie Rein
Core Themes and Discussions
Social Media: Several people shared that they will be going off social media completely and will no longer be leveraging social media for their business. I'm curious to see if this becomes a trend.
Quantum Leaps: There was a lot of discussion on making quantum leaps in your business. Skipping each rung of the ladder and jumping straight to the top. Folding time. There were so many breakthroughs and insights shared around the quantum leaps people are making in their business.
Zone of Genius: Lots of great discussion on identifying and stepping into your zone of genius vs. your zone of excellence. At past events, we read The Big Leap before attending. This is one of those discussions that brings about new insights and next level thinking no matter how many times you have it.
Asset Focused Thinking: Great discussions around building true assets in your business and what some of the most important assets are, from the obvious to the less obvious that have a big impact on acquiring funding or selling your business in the future. So many great takeaways, one being the importance of clean financials.
Leaning Out: Although no one used the words "leaning out" except for me :) there was so much discussion around what leaning out stands for - letting go of and eliminating everything that is unnecessary or not in alignment with your next level, doubling down on what's working, making an impact and providing incredible value and quality for your clients, and overall simplification. As Ali said “What if it’s easier than we think?.” In my experience, it usually is - it just takes leaning out to get there.
Overall, it was an incredible 2 days of insight, inspiration, and connection with the most amazing women. I am already looking forward to the next Ali event and hope she does ICONIC again. See you there!
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by Crista Grasso
Crista Grasso is the go-to strategic planning expert for leading global businesses and online entrepreneurs when they want to scale. Known as the "Business Optimizer", Crista has the ability to quickly cut through noise and focus on optimizing the core things that will make the biggest impact to scale a business simply and sustainably. She specializes in helping businesses gain clarity on the most important things that will drive maximum value for their clients and maximum profits for their business. She is the creator of the Lean Out Method, 90 Day Lean Out Planner, and host of the Lean Out Your Business Podcast.
