Hey APW,
As those of you who have been following me know (and anyone with a rational brain) can figure out, the past year-plus has been a very weird time to be in the wedding industry. We feel SO DAMN BLESSED that APW is still up and running and supporting our staff, and we owe that in no small part to the folks who contribute to our Patreon (particularly those who stepped up in the very darkest days last spring), and honestly, the federal government. (Let’s hear it for two rounds of PPP and several emergency SBA loans.) But. As we’ve waded through the pandemic, I’ve been figuring out what other projects I want to work on, to keep myself sane.
Around this time last year, I launched Practical Business School, as a way of passing on my hard-earned business knowledge to other women. But as I kept working on it, the idea kept evolving (as, you know, ideas do). If been following me on IG Stories where I’ve been talking A LOT about antisemitism and life as a Jewish woman in 2021. And on there you may have gotten a peek into the months of soul searching and work (and I’ll be sharing more about that process in my newsletter, so you should sign up) that have led to this moment. And today, I’m so proud to tell you about the launch of a brand new project:
I am proud and delighted to announce that we’re launching Niqeva: an online community and safe space for ambitious Jewish women. Applications for Niqeva are open now through Friday, August 13th.
Niqeva is a diverse community created for Jewish and Jewishly affiliated women and femmes to focus on their careers, businesses, and ambitions. We created it to be a space for both entrepreneurs and women and femmes in more traditional careers. It’s a safe space for Jewish women from all walks of life to connect, support each other, and figure out what is next in our lives and careers.
This is a space where we can be unapologetic about our drive to want more, our need to create legacies that matter, our fears and desires around money, and figuring out how to create a life we want (and what that life looks like in the first place). Niqeva is a place where you can ask at any age “What do I want to do when I grow up? Who do I want to be?” And you will find a community ready to rally around you, support you, help you find those answers, and then hold you accountable as you build a game plan to go after them. This is also a community that will support you when you just need a nap.
More than anything, Niqeva is the safe space so many of us Jewish women and femmes need. It’s a place where we don’t have to flatten or shrink our Judaism to be accepted. It’s a place where our Jewish values and history can live right alongside our drive to build something meaningful. It’s a place where we can (literally or figuratively) let our hair down, and discuss our joys and fears.
WHAT WE’LL BE DOING IN NIQEVA:
Click through for all the details, but we’ll be focusing on growing our business or building careers, and the unique pressures of doing so as a Jewish woman in this particular moment. We’re here to learn and grow together, network, and lift each other up.
HOW WE’LL BE DOING THAT:
- Monthly live group coaching sessions. We’ve been doing some form of these sessions or another—first with wedding vendors, then with small business owners, and finally with ambitious women on all kinds of career paths—since 2019. They have worked so well that we’ve seen participants have life-changing results and transformations in themselves and their businesses.
- Stop the Scroll. A monthly meetup about something we’re reading together.
- A guest lecture or coaching session from one of the power players in our network.
- Monthly Happy Hour sessions. Drink, talk, make friends, get support, be in community.
- A safe, moderated, online forum that’s live 24/7, so you can get support from other smart amazing Jewish women when you need it.
- Special bonuses like workbooks and worksheets to help you dig into your goals and your blocks so you can get moving again.
THE DETAILS:
Memberships range from $18/month (community supported membership), $36/month (full-priced membership), to $52/month (a community *supporting* membership). In the long tradition of Jewish organizations, nobody will be turned away for lack of funds. Both giving what you need AND taking what you need are equally important mitzvahs.
Enrollment closes on Friday, August 13th. After this date, applications will be open via our referral program only. (That means all members will have a link and a way to refer friends.)
If you’d like to join, please click through to apply. If you have a Jewish girlfriend for who this would be perfect, please forward this to them. The process is simple: fill out a short application (we’re screening members simply to keep our community safe). A few days later, you will receive an acceptance email from our team, and then we’ll all come together live on Zoom on August 19th to kick things off.
And if you’re wondering, “But what about me!? I’m not Jewish!” Don’t worry. As always, my focus remains on serving ambitious women of all kinds. I fully expect more projects to follow from Practical Business School. But when I asked myself “Who needs me THE MOST, RIGHT NOW?” The answer was very clear to me. And thus, Niqeva was born.
For those of you joining Niqeva, I can’t wait to meet you or get to know you better inside the community. And for everyone else, thank you so much for all of your support, it’s what’s gotten me this far on the journey.
NIQEVA IS OPEN FOR ENROLLMENT NOW THROUGH FRIDAY AUGUST 13TH AT 3PM PT
