Artikel/Blog LandingpadBerlin
Finding Your Tribe: 6 Best Women’s Networks In Berlin
With the explosion of social media, connection opportunities are boundless. But have we become so obsessed with bumping up our number of contacts on LinkedIn, that we’ve lost site of the real purpose of networking – surrounding ourselves with people that are going to help us achieve our goals?
So how do you go about finding your tribe, a core group of like-minded folk who understand where you are coming from and will support you on your journey from A to B?
Start by getting clear on exactly what you want. In one year’s time, where do you see yourself? What do you want to achieve both professionally and personally?
Next make a list of people who can help you get to where you want to be. Good candidates to include in your tribe are people who know more than you about something you need to know. Someone who successfully made the career move that you want to make, or who has overcome obstacles similar to your own. The ideal number of tribe members is between four and six people—large enough for variety, small enough to maintain connections.
You might be lucky enough to find your tribe amongst your existing contacts. But if not, how else can you come across them?
I’ve been an advocate and champion of women and their careers for many years. Here’s a list of my favourite, unique, tried-and-tested groups I’ve come across in Berlin where you are sure to find women who will be willing and eager to cheer you on and be invested in your success. If I have missed a group who you think should be on the list, please let me know in the comments below.
This dynamic network founded by change makers Danit Gal and Mali M. Baum in 2016, is committed to the promotion of gender diversity and authenticity in leadership. Their vision is to create as many as possible points of influence through their events and activities with a focus on sharing and collaboration, as well as training, mentoring and the promotion of female role-models. Highly recommended for high impact women. Events are invite only.
On a mission to inspire the next generation of global leaders, Role Models has hosted eighteen live events featuring women we look up to, including the likes of Cynthia Barcomi, Ida Tin, and Simone Menne. Earlier this year, Isa Sonnenfeld and David Noël introduced a weekly podcast to accompany their event series, with conversations with women on how they got to where they are – lessons they’ve learned, the decisions they’ve made, and the challenges they’ve overcome. Interviews are far-reaching and not to be missed.
This new community-driven platform for existing and aspiring female entrepreneurs, aims to sign up 20, 000 women in its first year according to founders Lauren Davies and Cerina Bezuidenhout. The platform was launched in Cape Town in August 2017, and Berlin was the first city globally to host a Future Females event the following month. Join the Future Females Facebook group to connect with members and gain access to the key resources you need to succeed as a female entrepreneur.
I love the excellent work MentorMe is doing to support young women and their careers. Along with their 12-month mentoring programme matching female students, graduates and young professionals with experienced women in business, MentorMe also provide on- and offline ‘on the job’ career skills training and a host of networking events.
MumsLikeUs is a community of over 1,200 oh so fabulous working and want-to-be- working mums. The group is warm and welcoming and a great place to learn, grow and be inspired, as well as connect with other women in Berlin navigating the heady world of career and family. Informal networking lunches are held once a month and there’s an active online Facebook group, where members ask for advice and share information and resources on all things working motherhood.
The Berlin Geekettes concept was born around a dinner table in a Thai restaurant in Mitte back in 2011 and has since grown into a movement inspiring the next generation of women to pursue careers in technology. Now with nine hubs across Europe and the United States, founder Jess Erickson and her team of Ambassadors engage with local communities through meet-ups, workshops and events. New faces are always welcome at Geekettes Monthly, an open meeting in Berlin for everyone wanting to mingle and talk shop with a group of like-minded women in tech. Check out the Berlin Geekettes page on Facebook for dates.
Contribution by Melanie Fieseler, co-founder of Landing Pad Berlin, an organisation on a mission to help internationals feel settled and at home, and get the most out of their experience living and working in the German capital. Melanie is Managing Director at Melanie Fieseler Consulting.
Melanie is an independent career consultant who counsels men and women on all areas of career development – from assessing their career options to building resilience, and everything in between. Melanie is not your typical career expert – she offers strategic, Germany-specific, no-holds-barred advice and a point of view directly from her talent and recruiting experience at leading multi-national companies.
Meet Melanie at the next Landing Pad Event and get all your career and work related questions answered.
