I had the most awesome opportunity to attend Every Stylish Girl’s Sip N’ Slay, a networking brunch for girl bosses making moves in fashion, beauty and bidness. It was a day loaded with tasty eats, drinks and tantalizing conversation! The room was jam-packed with wisdom and I got to meet so many amazing women. Of course, I had to share those gems sprinkled all over the room with you boss babes.

Digital Content Creator Bobo Matjila of @thisfashionfiend_ had loads to say about taking the first step, knowing yourself, and setting yourself apart:

Gem 1: Take the first step! But first, know yourself. 

“All it takes is that one step and then everything happens organically,” Matjila says. However, before you act, you must sit down and think, who am I? She pointed out that as much as you may think you don’t know what to do, you actually do know! #trueee

“You have to know your why before you execute anything.”

Matjila comes from an African family and I come from a Haitian one so I totally related to having parents who have strict notions of what it means to be stable and successful. It also just reiterated my gratefulness to have them and for their support of all I do. She reminded us, there will be “noise” from your family and maybe even your friends but no one knows what you want to do more than you.” So stick to it, ladies!

[ctt template=”7″ link=”74Xe1″ via=”yes” ]”No one knows what you want to do more than you.”[/ctt]

“I don’t believe in competition,” Matjila says. “The world wants us to compete. We black women are  already pigeon holed into one spot enough by society.”

Motto: There is room for us ALL. 

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ANTM Finalist and Skin BUTTR CEO Tatiana Elizabeth went hard on expressing how to boldly assert and sell ourselves.

Gem 2: Go ALL in.

Tatiana just went for it when it came to auditioning to America’s Next Top Model and forming her own skin line. She didn’t allow the opportunity to present itself, she just did what she had to do even when she didn’t know what she was doing. She called it, “go as your grow.”

[ctt template=”7″ link=”diO8j” via=”no” ]”Go as you grow.”[/ctt]

I loved her advice on opportunity because I wholeheartedly believe in it. Most of the time, you have to make it f o r  y o u r s e l f! She didn’t count on Top Model to give her opportunities, she kept it going on her own. Her point was to make it with or without what you think you need. “You can’t rely on these little things to make you better or take you to a new level.”

[ctt template=”7″ link=”b97Ij” via=”no” ]”You can’t rely on things to make you better or take you to the next level.”[/ctt]

Gem 3: Be so into you.

Self-explanatory, girl. You should be feelin’ you!

This gem also goes hand in hand with  Gem 1: when you know and love yourself, you can make money off of yourself. If you know your needs, then somebody out there needs it too. You can make money off of your creativity.

Gem 4: Don’t be afraid of help.

Tatiana’s boyfriend is one of her main supporters and also assists her with her business. At first, however, she didn’t want anyone to touch her business and it still is difficult for her to give responsibility over to anyone else. She wanted the ability to say, “It’s mine. I did it.” We could all relate. Her wise advice? “It’s not taking anything away from you if you don’t give a little bit. If you want it all, you have to let some of it go.”

[ctt template=”7″ link=”0Oyca” via=”no” ]”If you want it all, you have to let some of it go.”[/ctt]

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Maya Allen, Fashion & Beauty Assistant at Cosmopolitan.com, was preachin’ about how kindness, determination and knowing your purpose is a recipe for success!

Gem 5: Go to work, even when it’s not what you want to be doing. 

Allen interned pretty much everywhere! She encourages all you girl bosses to just go to work! It may not be your dream job and it may not be what speaks to you, but if it’ll get your foot in the door, do it.

Gem 6: Be kind. 

Allow kindness to be your nature. People will remember you for your heart. Believe it or not, that trait will also come in clutch in terms of the workplace.

Gem 7: It’s not all about you. 

Like the boss that Allen is, she uses the Cosmo brand to capitalize off of her own brand. Not only that, she’s a boss with a heart. She realizes that her work is more than just her’s. Her purpose is inclusion and giving us diverse women the proper representation we need in media.

[ctt template=”7″ link=”80tED” via=”no” ]”My career and legacy is not just for myself.”[/ctt]

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Chelsea Turpin, PR at Boohoo, Event Planner and Host of CuffingSZN, was spitting Instagram realness.

Gem 8: The proof is in the numbers.

My major takeaway? In life: “Do something that pays the bills but also do things that make you fulfilled.” As for insta: create content you’re proud of, but also realize your following proves your legitimacy.

[ctt template=”7″ link=”r4Ubf” via=”no” ]”Do something that pays the bills but also do things that make you fulfilled.”[/ctt]

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Anayka Pomare, Vogue Freelancer and founder of The Doyenne, also relayed her professional take of Instagram.

Gem 9: Know your field and produce your best work to get in.

“Instagram is your resume,” she says. In life, we all must go hard and our social channels should be examples of that. Allow our platforms to show others whatever field you’re trying to get into.

[ctt template=”7″ link=”43Q7u” via=”no” ]”Your Instagram needs to cater to what you plan on doing in the future.”[/ctt]

Telsha Anderson, Social Media Producer at Food & Wine and Truce Mag, exposed all the goods on curating content.

Gem 10: Don’t forget to experiment and share. 

In other words, some content creators can be stingy. Don’e be one of them. Share — we could all flourish together. Going further, don’t just stick with what you know. Get into trial and error. See what works for you because at the end of the day “you can always delete.”

[ctt template=”7″ link=”3bCZJ” via=”no” ]”Share — we could all flourish together.” [/ctt]

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Whew! I told ya, good stuff. That’s all the girlboss gems I have for you for now. Hope you look into these amazing women and support their work!

Photos by Every Stylish Girl*