Success Creators

DC Startup Week #DCSW 2018 Recap and Live-Streams!

/ Simply Ebony / Leave a comment

Thank you for helping us make this the biggest DC Startup Week #DCSW yet! This was our third annual celebration with over 5,000 attendees throughout the DMV. The 5-day interactive week showcased hundreds of regional startups, entrepreneurs and the regions’ bustling ecosystem, helping to further foster growth within the local startup community.

DC Startup Week participants networked and gained knowledge by attending thought-provoking, informative and entertaining panels, pitch competition, hackathons, exhibitions and discussions put on by more than 50 collaborating organizations including The Mayor’s Office, several coworking places, startups, corporations, nonprofits and educational institutions.

We put together 120+ sessions with 220+ speakers in 33 locations across the city, Northern Virginia and Maryland in just one week! We couldn’t have done it without you.

We ended the week with a Pitch Competition where the local startup, Twenty Tables won cash prizes from DC Startup Week and in kind prizes from its sponsors Google Cloud, GSP, Silver Strategy, Alley Powered by Verizon and Metamer Productions.

We thank all the sponsors, speakers, participants, volunteers and venues who made this the most successful DC Startup Week to date. We can’t wait to see you at future events.

In case you missed them, you can watch the week’s 19 live-streamed sessions. Just click the links below and it will take you straight to the recording!

HireHer Panel: The Minority Majority

Learn How to Maximize Mentor Relationships

Panel: How to Build a B2B Sales Team

Meeting the Challenges of Hiring Service Providers and Gig Economy Professionals

Scale Yourself from Founder to CEO

How to Know What Your Customers Want Before Building Your Product

Panel: Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality & the Future of Content Marketing

DevFest DC : How to Erase Unconscious Bias from your AI Datasets

DevFestDC: Google + AI

Panel: Are You Ready for the Spotlight?

Bias Breakers and Being an Ally

Panel: Creating Beautiful and Intuitive User Experiences

5G Future Series: Balancing Community Safety & Tech in a 5G World

Corporate Partnerships: Part 1 – Community, Connections & Commitments to Closing Equity Gaps

Corporate Partnerships: Part 2 – Community, Connections & Commitments to Closing Equity Gaps

Telling Your Story: Why I Spent 600 Hours for a 7 Minute Talk

Multi-Platform Content Marketing for Startups

Video for Startups & Enterprise Business

Pitch Competition: The Pitches

Pitch Competition: Winner Announcement

6th annual Warriors To The Workforce Veterans Hiring Event

/ Simply Ebony / Leave a comment

Attention Veterans and Spouses: 6th annual Warriors To The Workforce Veterans hiring event on October 8 – 9 at the Washington DC Convention Center in conjunction with AUSA’s Annual Meeting & Exposition 2018. This unique hiring event for Veterans, transitioning service members and military spouses will be held at the largest land warfare trade show in North America with over 700 exhibitors and 30,000 attendees.

The event website is http://www.warriorstotheworkforcedc.net.

Google for Veterans

/ Simply Ebony / Leave a comment

They call me Ms. Google (Chuckles) imagine if #Google hires me one day. 😉😉😉 Google has launched this handy feature to help Veterans search and find jobs. You just type in your MOS/AFSC/etc. and Veteran Jobs in the Google search bar. A list of applicable jobs will magically appear. Try it and show me what you find! #SimplyEbony #Veterans #Jobs #JobSearch Google Search: https://www.google.com/search

My Story of Survival and Courage

/ Simply Ebony / Leave a comment

#TBT @simplyebony1 @success.creators #ThursdayThoughts #SimplyEbony #MyStory

Who was this woman four years ago? This woman had just transitioned from the Air Force a world she knew all her adult life. This woman had just launched her non-profit The Next Chapter and started her new position with the government. This woman fled her apartment in the middle of the night fearful of her life. Her abusive, manipulative, and controlling ex-boyfriend threatened to kill her and he was law enforcement. The police and courts failed to protect her. She spent years in court when her abuser refused to comply with the protective order. She lived every night in fear and had to leave her job, her apartment, and the life she knew to escape her ex-boyfriend who was not only abusive but a stalker. This woman was unemployed for four months trying to figure it all out. This woman never lost faith. This woman was in transition on the path to rebuilding her life. She found strength in her Sisters of Queen Esther at @fbcglenarden First Baptist Church of Glenarden. She joined @bosseduporg Bossed Up Courage Community! This woman found a community of Sisters with @emiliearies Bossed Up! This women kept a smile. She wasn’t deterred. She fought her way through her circumstances. She wasn’t a victim nor did she ever once ask for a hand out. She picked herself up. She leaned on her support system. She entered the Next Chapter of her life like a Boss! This woman is a survivor. This woman is ME.

#WINsDay Celebrating 18 Years of Government Service

/ Simply Ebony / Leave a comment

This month I celebrate over 18 years serving in the Government of the United States of America! 🇺🇸 My first 14 was Enlisted in the United States Air Force and the past 4 was serving as a government civilian. In these four years I’ve achieved tremendous goals.

My proudest moment was serving on the team that successfully implemented Project SOAR a Pilot Program that provided approximately $2 million of Grant funding to public housing authorities (PHAs) to deploy education navigators that provide individualized assistance to youth and their families in FAFSA completion, financial literacy and college readiness, postsecondary program applications and post-acceptance assistance. Philadelphia, Chicago, and Los Angeles were amongst the cities that received funding.

I received recognition for my work and was awarded the Innovator of the Year by the Next Generation (NEXTGen) of Government: NEXTGen Award Winners. I currently serve on the board that plans the NEXTGen Training Conference for future government leaders. I also serve as a senior mentor for both NEXTGen and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Cyber Professionals.

My agency paid for me to earn my certificate as an Associate Certified Coach for the International Coach Federation and my Masters Certificate in Project Management from George Washington University.

This was all in four years time. Imagine the possibilities in the next four years! I’m excited to see where this journey will lead me. I share my experience to inspire others and to show you that anything is possible. You can choose to just go to work and clock in and out or you can choose to make a difference. Your choice!!! Choose to be GREAT!!!

#SimplyEbony #SuccessCreators #WINsDay

Financial Peace University

/ Simply Ebony / Leave a comment

Before I got to the point of financial peace by attending the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University, I had mounting debt and was irresponsible with spending and planning. I left the military in 2012, worked in the private industry, doubled my salary, went through unemployment following the furlough fiasco and was still able to successfully pay off all debt, save thousands, and purchase a home!

I paid down my debt using the snow ball method. Paid the lowest off first and used the extra money once paid off towards the next lowest debt. I cut up all of my credit cards and used only cash or my debit card.

My credit score increased dramatically. I was approved for a mortgage and purchased my home in a little over 3-weeks! I prepared a year in advance by attending a HUD Approved first time homebuyers course. Plus carefully monitored my credit.

I landed a job through hard work applying daily for positions, but consider this…I was unemployed for 4-months! In the interim I served as a political consultant and I established a non-profit The Next Chapter, which cost several thousand dollars out of my own pocket to incorporate. Never once did I worry about bills because I had savings, a budget, and a plan.

My quality of life did not suffer. I gained financial peace in less than two years! Discipline+Purposeful Planning+Goals

=Financial Peace.

Check out the classes or get info here:

http://www.daveramsey.com/store/financial-peace-university/cFpu.html

Every Dollar Budgeting Tool

https://www.everydollar.com/app/sign-up

Dave Ramsey Store (Books, Classes, Financial Tools)

http://www.daveramsey.com/store/

#SmartMoney #TotalMoneyMakeover #FinancialPeaceUniversity #DavidRamsey #SuccessCreators #SimplyEbony

DC Department IG Employment Services – Community Conversations

/ Simply Ebony / Leave a comment

Last night I had the pleasure of attending the Community Conversations for Wards 4, 5, and 6 hosted by the DC Department of Employment Services (DOES). Dr. Unique Morris-Hughes, the Interim Director of the DOES, provided the community residents an overview of the programs offered by DOES. Programs highlighted included: American Job Centers; Back to Work 50+; DC Infrastructure Academy; Learn, Earn, Advance, Prosper (LEAP); Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program (MBSYEP); In-School-Program; Out-of-School-Program; and The Pathways for Young Adults Program (PYAP). One immediate observation is the major need to provide services for transitioning adults 30+ seeking career opportunities after unemployment for prolonged periods.

To learn more about the many great employment and training resources offered by the DOES visit here: https://does.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/does/page_content/attachments/DOES_Program_Guide_Web.pdf