14 months ago, a friendship was born of nothing.

Rosemary Watson and I had both been longtime followers of Jana on Instagram and one day the three of us had a conversation in Jana's comments. That conversation became a google hangout and then became a business with two successful e-courses behind us and so much more on the horizon.

three babes, two decades, one perfect relationship.

We get asked all the time what the magic behind the mystery is. The truth is a lot less sexy than y'all would think. We don't have any kind of wild or romantic partnership story. The honest truth is that we built a genuine connection online and took it offline.

The First Course

In March of 2016, we met for the very first time over Google Hangouts. We chatted and were immediately just like old friends. It's amazing how three women with very different backgrounds and belief systems could come together like we'd known each other for years. I tell people the story of how we met all the time and the first response is always wonder at how such an intimate relationship was born of such a cold communication method (#theinternet). We even learned how to file partnership taxes (10/10 would not recommend DIY-ing this project).

That initial meeting also inspired the Styled Marketing Course, which many of you fell in love with. From March through August 2016, we worked diligently on the course, meeting every other week to check in on our progress. We met with a lawyer and had a partnership agreement drawn up and we formed a multi-member LLC. In August 2016, we met in person for the first time (yes, we legally formed a business together and worked together for 6 months before we even met in person) and that same week, the Styled Marketing Course went live.

the instagram convo that started it all.

The Mastermind

At some point over the summer, we added in one extra meeting a month and became each others' mastermind partners as well, problem solving all kinds of business issues and challenges as a team. Not only were we building a business together, but we've also supported each other through breakups, moves, business shifts, and everything in between.

The second course

After SMC finished, we regrouped to decide what to do next and the idea for The Seller Society was born. Without taking a beat from launching SMC (but of course taking time to celebrate it's success), we began planning for The Seller Society. In January 2017, we "soft-launched" the new course and in March 2017, we did a five day challenge and launched The Seller Society for-real.

In less than a year, the three of us met, formed a business, and launched two profitable courses, with the second one doubling the first one's success.

THE RETREAT

If you've followed my Instagram / Instastories at all this past weekend, then you know that the three of us converged on Phoenix, Arizona for the mastermind retreat to end all mastermind retreats. Appropriately titled Phoenix Rising, we came together for only the second time since we first met to socialize, celebrate, and truly get shit done. We're in a place now where we even know each other's families (everyone knows I'm obsessed with #barrybishop) and as a group, we got sodas from a soda shop on a late Friday night - families and business can 100% mix.

We had a legitimate agenda (PDF and all, y'all), a clear goal, and a vision for the future as we all got together Friday morning. From Friday morning to Saturday night, we planned out almost an entire new project to launch (details coming Winter 2017), masterminded through some major business challenges (hotseat style, complete with audio recordings for us to take home and re-listen to), and we even took time to relax at the Kimpton Palomar Phoenix pool to celebrate everything that's happened in the past year. (See my blog post on my time at the Palomar.)

(PS - y'all probably saw that my assistant Caitlyn came along for the ride. We were able to introduce her to hotseats, build her a website, and get her set up across all social media this weekend too. So proud of how much Caitlyn grew this weekend!)

What's Next?

If you know the three of us, you know that we're a pretty restless bunch, always buzzing with ideas. Our next project (details coming Winter 2017) is going to challenge our skillsets and allow us to grow as a business together. I'm so proud of all that we've accomplished together in the past 14 months but truly cannot wait to see where the next year takes us!