I recently served on the Personal Branding Panel at the Renegade Women’s Conference presented by Donna and Nailah. I was nervous as heck going into it, but in the end I had a blast and I can’t wait to do it again — and I will this Friday at the Curly Cartel Natural Beauty Experience!

I did my research before RWC and I have to say, it paid off big time! Here are some words of advice on how you can rock your next panel!

– Be Prepared

Man oh man, a little prep goes a long way! Donna + Nailah gave our panel sample questions and I wrote down some notes the night before the conference. I’m not shy, but I’ve never had the opportunity to speak in front of so many (about 100.. eep!) women entrepreneurs! Having those notes done and feeling prepared really helped ease my nerves. I don’t recommend bringing notes on stage but it’s good be familar with the topic and allow the discussion to evolve organically.

– Make the Conversation

Panels should never be mini presentations from each panelist, but rather a conversation with guided questions. I would recommend getting to know your panelists before the panel begins so you’ll be comfortable with the conversation on stage. Sharzad of Luxelyfe and I have spent hours chatting in the past so we really felt comfortable referring to one another and making the panel more conversational.

– Give Personal Examples

Speaking on theories and concepts can get really boring, really fast. I love hearing how panelists have specifically applied these ideas to their own life and what the results were. At RWC, I spoke a lot about being your authentic self with your content and finding your voice. What does that mean? Well for me it meant not trying to be who I thought everyone would enjoy (a combination of Nene Leakes + Bethany Frankel on camera — my manfriend told me to cut it out). Branding is all about who your are and having a consistent voice that carries across all platforms. This example gave the concept clarity and thinking of me trying to be Nene Leakes is pretty hard to forget.

– Give Actionable Takeaways

I love when I can give anyone an “aha moment.” The best way to do that is have an actionable takeaway ready to go. On the topic of personal branding I challenged everyone to reach out to their online audience to generate 3 words that describe their voice, and in turn their brand. I had so many people contact me during and after the conference saying this takeaway gave them their aha moment.

– Don’t Pitch!

Panels are an opportunity for conversation, not sales! Don’t be that person who uses the platform to promote their new book. It’s weird.

– Moderators make all the difference

Moderators are awesome because they guide the conversation, simulating thought and synergy along the way. Good moderators direct the questions to the panelists who are best fit to answer and know what kind of information the audience is hungry for. The moderators have to know the topic just as well as the panelists to understand how to make the best use of the allotted time. I particularly appreciate when the moderators introduce the panelist and talk about why they feel they are in the position to speak on the topic. I gotta say, Jules Taggart & Krystina Feucht of Kickstart Kitchen did a fantastic job moderating our panel at RWC.

Click here to check out more photos from the Renegade Women’s Conference!

I think I was around 6 when I gave my mother that answer. I dreamt big and I wanted the things my barbie’s lives were made of.

Now that I’m older, I really believe that mo money = mo problems.. but still, achieving millionaire status one day sounds pretty cool.

When I saw this iPhone cover from Kate Spade it spoke to the future millionairess inside of me. I was loved it but it needed more glam and it was missing gold. Everything needs a touch of gold.

The quote is perfection so I made Desktop/iPhone/iPad wallpapers as for the millionairess inside of you! Enjoy!

Click to download for your Desktop
Click to download for your Desktop (the organized version)
Click to download for your iPhone 5
Click to download for your iPhone 4/4s
Click to download for your iPad

Click here to get more goodies straight to your inbox!

I never thought I’d say this, but I actually look forward to heading to a park for an hour of intense exercise three times a week.

My educated guess is that love handles develop once you dive into a new relationship. No one has time for working out or counting calories when all you want to do is lay up under your new significant other. I don’t blame the manfriend for my laziness but this past New Year’s I decided enough was enough. I had indulged in many a fine dining experience, picked from way too many dessert menus. Now I’m ready take control again.

The day after Christmas I researched boot camps in my area of LA and stumbled upon the Los Angeles Adventure Boot Camp. I yelp everything and I really believe that reviews don’t lie — LAABC reviews blew me away. I was a little terrified but I couldn’t wait to get started.

When I first signed up, I figured I would learn the routines and then go ahead and do it on my own time. Now I don’t ever think I would go as hard as I do every morning if I tried to do it on my own. The accountability is key so I’m happy to sign up month after month.

Before LAABC I thought boot camp = scary big personal trainer guy yelling at you to keep going even when your body has given up. That’s not it at all. LAABC is only for the ladies and I love being around other women were striving to make themselves better. Everyone is super supportive. The workouts are pretty intense but you’re motivated to get through them and do your best.

I just completed my second month and I’ve never felt better about myself. I’m not one to count pounds, but I can’t deny no matter how amazing I feel and how clear my mind is after I’ve constitantly exercised for a few weeks. Just knowing that I’m taking care my body is reason enough for me to keep it up.

If you’re in LA and you’re ready to get your sexy back (hey, summer’s right around the corner!) check out Los Angeles Adventure Bootcamp!

P.S. I hear their groupon deal is pretty awesome!

At 26, I’m living a life I’ve wanted since I knew the definition of “entrepreneur” (around 6 years old).

Since I started Kriss Did It, I’m always getting questions like:

I would love to say I was born with all this knowledge and entrepreneurship is effortless, but have to give credit where credit is due.

I was at a point in my life where I knew just what I wanted:

1) Be my own boss and start building my mini empire
2) Help women entrepreneurs with their branding and online presence

Earlier that year I had started taking on a handful of clients while continuing my full time job as an in-house graphic designer. It was tough, but I was determined to make enough money so that the leap wasn’t too scary and I’d have some sort of cushion if I wasn’t totally ready. In March, I changed my position from full time to part time and stayed home 3 days a week working on my business. Let me tell you, it was HARD. I spent most days watching videos and searching the internet for millionaire success stories trying to figure out how THEY did it and how I could apply their lessons to MY business. This was fun, but a waste of time. Searching took forever and I had to look through a lot of crap before I found the real gems.

In May, I learned about Marie Forleo’s B-School and this awesome community of “B-School Babes” and found there were tons of women just like me who are succeeding as entrepreneurs. I joined B-School to learn everything I didn’t learn when I spent over $15,000 in business school as an undergrad. I knew I wanted to help women and make money but how to market, optimize my website, profit clarity (the list goes on!) was still unclear, until B-School.

Taken straight from the site..

“B-School is the world’s first online business school for women entrepreneurs.

This curriculum based training program teaches smart, modern and “non-douchy” online marketing strategies to women business owners who want more sales and more impact from their online presence.

The program is delivered as an 8-week, video based, interactive online training program that demands big action and creates big results.”

My girl Danielle called me up the week before B-School enrollment was closing. She told me she signed up and thought it would be great to go through the program together. That was the push I needed to make the investment. I knew that with her I would always have someone to ask the questions I’d be too embarrassed to put in the B-School Facebook group! Plus, I’d have the accountability to push me forward.

After taking B-School, I understood exactly how to get and keep clients and I met some remarkable people along the way — many of them became my clients! I doubled what I was making full time at my in house job and I am enjoying my dream life of working from my apartment.

I don’t recommend B-School to everyone. It is for you if you:

- Are ready to dive into the entrepreneurial life
- Are over constantly looking for information on how to grow your business
- Aren’t afraid to really work hard to make the life you want
- Don’t make excuses and know you are in charge of your own destiny
- Are ready to do what you love and make a living from it
- Are willing to MAKE time to do work directly related to your business success
- Are passionate about changing your life NOW.

Danielle made all the difference in my B-School experience. Every Saturday we met at the library of the nearby university to go over our “homework” and epiphanies. I was able to share and get immediate feedback on my new ideas and learned from how Danielle applied the same lessons to her business.

Marie is the bomb.com and gives the the amazing opportunity for B-School alums give a bonus to anyone to signs up for B-School, and she pays us to do it! This is why I came up with The Come Up Collective.

Yup, just what I had with Danielle, and trust me, you’ll see HUGE results when you can work with someone who’s been there! Plus, that’s a $1200 value that you will be getting for FREE!

1) Watch Marie’s FREE training videos here
2) Enroll in Marie Forleo’s B-School through my special link here!*
3) Immediately email me with the subject “Come Up Collective” and I’ll email you back with all the details to get started.

*The link is super important! You have to click the link just before you enroll so I’m notified that you want to work with me and want to join in the Come Up Collective!

Hurry, enrollment closes March 4th!

I’m sure you’ve come across a video on Youtube that made you say, Hey, I like that person. Guess what, people want to work with people they like. I bet that if you could just have 5 minutes to speak with a potential client you would be able to show them why they need your services. You can’t speak with every person out there, but you can have videos work for you 24/7.

I get it, it takes real cajones to press that upload button. I made several videos that were never published before co-hosting Brand New Nation.

Here’s why it took me so long.

• My focus was on perfection because I believed thatʼs what was expected/wanted.
• I got caught up on the script and didn’t trust myself to speak from the heart.
• I concentrated on the delivering the “right” content instead of what is “valuable”.
• I wanted it to be a grand production – if it wasn’t pro-fesh I wasn’t doing it. Very silly indeed.

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Did January fly by for you too or is it just me?! If that was any indication of how 2013 will be I am pumped!

I launched not one but TWO websites that have been months in the making. Merissa Grayson and Vasavi Kumar are some of the best clients a girl could ask for. Check out their new sites!

I took a much needed vaca to San Francisco where the manfriend had his first Bay Area performance. And of course, he killed it.

Which brings me toooo..

I met her awesome parents at Gavin’s comedy show and they told me she reads my blog. Thank you darlin for your continued support! Definitely made my week!

I also assisted on a fabulous photo shoot for my clients, Fabulous on a Budget. Can’t wait to show everyone what we’ve been creating!

Speaking of shoots.. I found my inner model for a catalog shoot with Royal Dynamite. So fun!

One of my proudest moments in January.. finishing my first round of bootcamp!! I signed up for 12 days of freezing 7:30am workouts. One morning it was 36 degrees! Insanity! More posts on the best bootcamp in LA coming soon!

NYE with my love!

2013 is in full swing and I’m so excited for what this year has to offer. I’ve never really been into resolutions but I do like to switch things up and start new years off right.

This year I enrolled in my first bootcamp. Outdoors. 7:30am. 3 days a week. Average temp: 40 degrees.

Day 1: Waiting for my trainer, I couldn’t believe I was at a park while the sun was just coming up.

It’s VERY intense and I’ve been consistently sore in places I didn’t know existed, but I’m starting to love it, and that’s a thought I never could have fathomed 2 months ago.

I’ve also been incredibly busy making design magic for a few websites launching in the next couple of months! I can’t wait for you all to check them out!

Are you on instagram? Find me @KrissDidIt for more on my 2013 adventures!

I’m usually on the fence when it comes to whether or not I should get my makeup done professionally for an event. Usually, the answer is no. It’s sucha gamble. I’ve had a couple times where I’m absolutely in love with the finished look but sooo many times where I end up with my face looking so left field of what I requested! I find it easier to just do it myself!

Well I knew I would be happy with the results from Team PROliphic Beauty. You can tell that Melissa Hibbert knows her stuff (just take a look at her–she’s beyond gorgeous!) and I knew I would be in good hands.

Melissa hooked up my girl, Ferris while Rose worked alongside her to give me a look that was perfect for the Makeup & Martinis event, my boyfriend’s comedy show after and a good friend’s holiday party later that night! Yes, this look had to hold up for hourrrssss and it surely did!

Check out the photos:

Rose gave me a deep smokey eye with a pinky-nude lip and it was PERFECTION. She made sure I was happy and that was so, so appreciated! She’s wonderful to work with!

Are you on instagram? Find me @KrissDidIt!
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