The Influential Summit

The Influential Summit, was held at the beautiful Cape Rey Carlsbad Hilton Resort, the perfect setting to relax, unwind, meet and mingle with some of the top brands and influencers in the industry.

I started my day at the summit with a very informative session held by one of my favorite women in the industry, Saarah Samadani. Does the name ring a bell? Saarah is co-founder of a very important event here in Los Angeles, the Celebrity Red Carpet Safety Event. Saarah's session, "What is a Media Kit, How Do I Create One, and Why Do I Need One?", was all about creating the perfect media kit. So much good information given, I came home and immediately started making changes to mine.

The evening reception followed the day's sessions. We did a lot of what Influencers and

Bloggers do best, take pictures!

We had great food and conversation, right on the beach. The beautiful part was, if you missed any of the sessions (there were so many great sessions) or wanted more information, the speakers were sitting right there next to you, providing you a candid opportunity to truly grasp what was being taught, on a very personal level.

I would have to say, besides the sessions, the reception was one of the most informative parts of the day. I sat next to Bianca Bloomfield, who lead the following morning's Yoga session, and got to pick her brain about Yoga for the boys. Also at the table was Meg Brunson, who's Facebook Pixel presentation I missed, so I got to catch up with her and learn a bit about Pixel. The girls from Dyper were so sweet, I almost wished that Skyler wasn't potty trained just so I could try out those amazing organic diapers. Last but not least, I loved hanging out with Sam Hunter, an awesome San Diego based fitness Influencer.

The first day was done by about 6:30, and I got to go to my lovely room, and spend some time with my hubby. Did you think I was going to drive down to Carlsbad all by myself? Nope, my sweet hubby packed up his work and joined me. It was a really nice work getaway for the two of us. He was able to take the entire day to work in peace, with a beautiful view of the ocean, while I "worked" at the Influential Summit downstairs.

We eventually went down for dinner, and had ourselves a lovely time at Chandler's Restaurant and Lounge, located on the first floor of hotel.

I started the next morning with an 8:00am Yoga session. I have little kids, so for me, 8:00am is like 10:00am for most. I was ready to start my day!

Okay folks, now this is where I really geek out. On the panel for "Welcome to Influential Summit: Under the Influence", was none other than my favorite reality TV star, and mama of two, "Little Women LA's", Terra Jole!

Here she is on the panel...

And there I am geeking out...

Alright, I'm done being a total geek. Back to the rest of the story...

After breakfast and the first session, the Influential Summit opened the doors to their Brand Showcase, where brands like Nanobebe, Cybex, Dyper, UPPAbaby and so many more, spoke directly to Bloggers and Influencers, building important business relationships.

I also got to drink Pina Colada's out of Nanobebe baby bottles...

Lunch was served right after the Brand Showcase, with the lunch panel being my absolute favorite of the weekend. The panel of mega and micro influencers discussed all things Instagram; how to grow, the pitfalls, the algorithms, and quite frankly, a lot that might make you want to turn away from the platform altogether. As a matter of fact, this is the panel that made a huge difference in my decision to put less focus on Instagram, and rather dedicate more of my time to building my business on my own platform, right here on www.sweetpandsky.com

I spent two lovely days in Cape Rey Carlsbad, attending the Influential Summit. It was a weekend full of information, a ton of laughs, Influencer/Brand connections and some serious bonding.