Icon Brunch With Olatowun Candide-Johnson

Osemhen’s Note: Sometimes, the best ideas are literally free.
Short story: I was going to interview a woman for the interview series we were going to call “Icon”. It was supposed to be an opportunity to explore the choices that older women have made in rising to the top of their careers while raising children. But the very first woman I planned to interview said, “I’d like to meet your community actually.” That was the beginning of this idea: a brunch series for young women to learn from and receive free mentoring advice from doyennes of industry.

We reached out to Mrs. Olatowun Candide-Johnson because someone in our Circle thought she’d be a good fit. A lawyer with over 30 years of experience working in law practice, shipping & oil & gas, she’s also an entrepreneur, director in multiple companies and a married mother of 3! Her enthusiastic response was, “It would be a pleasure to share my story with Blazers & Baby!” so of course, we also had to bring our A-game!

Because we’re working moms here, we’re all about getting the most value for our time. So in this round, we included free headshots so we could update our LinkedIn profiles and we prioritised interacting amongst ourselves so we could practice our networking skills on a smaller scale. Mentoring, networking and LinkedIn updates in one morning! Enjoy the pictures (click the gallery to expand) and the quotes from the session and hopefully, we’ll see you at the next one!

What was the most inspiring thing you heard at the brunch? Who said it?

‘Don’t apologize for the choices you make.’ Hilda, my seat mate.
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‘When a woman is tired and decides to call it quits, she has reached her breaking point and has to move on.’ Mrs. Candide-Johnson. I’ve been feeling a lot like this lately and it just made me feel better knowing that someone else had gone through that phase.
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‘Be your most authentic self.’ Mrs Candide-Johnson.
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‘Your team works better when they also know the why.’ Mrs Candide-Johnson.
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Mrs. Candide-Johnson spoke about creating value in her job by recognising that you can always give a bit more & do it well. That struck me.
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“Tell the universe what you want and it will respond .” Case in point: using public platforms like LinkedIn to indicate your interests. Hilda

(Fun-fact: Hilda is the CEO of Jobberman and a young mum of a toddler! Watch out for her Balance interview in a bit )

What did you love the most about the event?

“The really cool attendees and the great conversations.”
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“First off, knowing that burnout is a thing and not just a figment of my imagination. Secondly, all that career advice gave me clarity on my next career steps. Finally, knowing that I’m part of a group of strong women just had me in the feels.”
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“The venue, free headshots and the Icon herself.”
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“The Q&A session where we asked questions about our current situations and challenges….and how she answered using her past experiences.”
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“The intimate conversations with the speaker and amongst us. We spoke hard truths about our challenges, some of which we’d never said out loud before. And oh…the beautiful pictures. I keep staring at them!
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The honest conversations and practical advice given. It was enlightening to see someone who’s gone in your target path and get a glimpse of what might lie ahead.
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Having an older, accomplished woman share her experiences honestly, and meeting other professional women.

Ratings By Attendees (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)
Overall Event Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Event Organization: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Conversation with Icon: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Food: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Souvenir Notebook: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Likelihood of recommendation to a friend: 💯

Venue: The Orchid Bistro Express
Photographer: Tega Onakpome
Backdrop Designer: Rolyne Designs
Souvenir Notebooks: Manifest Nigeria Limited
Event Banner: KiaKia Print

You can get tickets to our next Icon Brunch here. It’s coming up on the 1st of October, 2019 and it’ll be in Surulere, Lagos. Come hang out!