Look Ma…I’m blogging

Written by on in Everyday Inspiration

Thanks to Hispanicize 2012 and wonderful friends

For those of you, who like me a few months ago, have no clue what Hispanicize 2012 was, let me tell you.  Hispanicize 2012 was a conference, targeted toward Latinos, that brought brands, media, marketers, celebrities, filmmakers, innovators and bloggers together in a unique creative environment focused on best practices and served as the launch pad for my new blogging endeavour.
I would have never known about this event had it not been for my social media guru friend Melanie (Que Means What?).
Beautiful pic by Melanie at Villa Vecchia
I told her I was in as soon as I heard it was taking place in Miami, but didn’t agree to join her at the conference until the agenda was finalized and saw I could register for sessions which would allow me to begin to learn more about social media and the impact it has on our world.

The first night in I learned about Latina Mom Bloggers and met Michelle (Family Love in My City), who’s quiet demeanor only hides the passion and joy she holds inside.  As we spoke she told me about her blog and asked me to share what my blog was about.  Sheepishly I told her that I did not have a personal blog, but was at the conference to see if I could find the answer to being comfortable about sharing my life on a blog and figure out what it was exactly that I wanted to blog about.  In her quite confidence, Michelle took it upon herself to cheer me on and to share stories of her apprehensions over the same things, but added that she’s been doing it for a couple of years and loves it.

As the days went on, I met the other bloggers – Candy (Mommypalooza), Courtney ( Detroit Mommies & Discovering Arkansas), Diane (PRSA), Lynda (Hit the Road Jane), Monica (Monica Wants It) and Zelma (Yo Soy Mami) – who not only got me to tweet for the first time (until this point I was mainly only using Twitter to follow celebrities), but who through their encouraging words made me realize that I too could blog.  No special credentials or qualifications needed, just the desire to put yourself out there and share your life with others.

CHECK OUT:  Prep Your TVs - Latinapalooza is Here!
Seeing the connections between brands, media and celebrities is what really sealed the power of blogging and social media for me.  My first full day at the event had great tips, which I will share in a separate blog, along with wonderful branding and celebrity encounters.
My first branding encounter came from Dove’s Vive Mejor lounge, which offered daily samples and insights into their newest products, along with professional insights from chefs, dermatologists, hair and makeup stylists at varying hours of the day.  Stopping by, learning and tweeting about their new products was a lot of fun!
Then that afternoon, thanks to Melanie, we were sitting in front of Tim McNeal (ABC/Disney Exec), Gina Rodriguez (Actress;Filly Brown) Steven Bauer (Actor;Scarface) and Bel Hernandez (CEO Latin Heat Media) hearing how each got their break and learning about their future projects.
Awe, Good Times! 😀
That night the brand love continued when McDonald’s invited us to a private yacht party with horderves and open bar as we cruised the Miami bay.
My view from the McDonald’s #chillatsea Yacht Party

Each day brought on new knowledge, along with fun brand and celebrity encounters.

Latinavator Maria Elena Salinas, Univision Anchor
Extreme close up of me and Latinovator Emilio Estefan, Music Mogul
Latinavator Cesar Millan (Dog Whisperer) and his dog, Jr.

It was an exciting and exhausting conference that culminated with a night of fun at the Villa Vecchia mansion, where we enjoyed horderves and Bacardi Dragon Berry drinks as we watched an outdoor screening of Scarface, jammed to Steven Bauer’s band and partied with our Scarface stars – Steven Bauer, Pepe Serna and Ángel Salazar.

Great night!

I couldn’t wait to come home and start my blog.  Unfortunately my body was in shock with the long days and nights and I ended up coming home with a cold that kept me out of commission for a while (still have the annoying after cough to boot).  All in all though, it was one of the most knowledge filled, fun and personal growth experiences I’ve had in a long time, that resulted in me saying “Look Ma…I’m blogging” – simply Amazing!

CHECK OUT:  Girls night out!

To see more photos, visit my album on Facebook.

Rocio Chavez
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