“You have five minutes to tell the person next to you about the things you are brilliant at and that you love doing.” An activity simple enough on the face of it but, in practice, mildly terrifying and almost impossible without resorting to plentiful ‘ums’ and a smattering of ‘quite goods’.
This was the task that Harriet Minter, founder and editor of the Guardian’s Women in Leadership section, set attendees of Funny Women’s Accidental Conference on Saturday. In a session entitled ‘Writing the news: impress the press’, by forcing (I mean encouraging) us to list our specialisms, Harriet drew our attention not only to expertise we might proffer to editors but also to the importance of really selling that knowledge. Why are you the perfect person to comment on that news story or trend, and how do you convince the editor of this? Making a strong connection by understanding their precise interests and then crafting the perfect pitch are both vital, Harriet said.
Knowing your audience was also key in a session on social media led by comedian and director of Penguin in the Room Samantha Baines. (“LinkedIn: purely business, keep your ‘swears’ for Facebook.”) Samantha talked attendees through new platforms such as Periscope as well as how best to use the ‘big four’ of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn, advising, “Be you, and be useful”.
After a generous lunch, the conference’s Women in Media theme continued as Ayesha Hazarika, former Chief of Staff to Harriet Harman, drew from her experiences of Westminster. Highlights included her emphasis upon the importance of recognising the ‘power behind the throne’: the hidden control structures behind the figureheads of an organisation which women must identify in order to target the decision-makers.
An animated hour learning to Stand Up to Stand Out with Funny Women founder Lynne Parker rounded off my personal timetable for the conference and more than piqued my interest for future Funny Women classes. No doubt plenty of food for thought arose during the day’s other workshops too, led by actress and coach Lisa Armytage, TV presenter Liz Fraser, business coach Jo James and freelance education consultant Siân Rowland.
Emerging from their different sessions, attendees came together for a rousing ‘headline act’ from the MP for Walthamstow – and just generally excellent – Stella Creasy. Deploring some of the dysfunctional aspects of parliament, “Hogwarts gone wrong” and putting her foot down about the need for women to state their job titles without apology, Stella above all encouraged women to support each other.
As attendees made their farewells, exchanging business cards and promises to keep in touch, it seemed they had this last point down already.
