June saw the second of 100 Allies’ Accelerator Clinics take place. The second gathering of a phenomenally talented group of people who want little more than to learn, and to lift.

This Clinic 2.0 brought me joy, not just because of the tangible difference you knew was being made for all those in attendance, but because of the sense of community.

It felt reminiscent of the joy you find in attending a festival. What it’s like to be in a big crowd, communing and sharing an experience. We’re so starved of that these days.

100 Allies and the work of Nnenna Onuba in bringing together mentors and mentees alike feels like the opposite of LinkedIn.

While I recognise the irony of sharing these musings on the platform I am expressing scepticism in, I feel we have entered an era of performative elevation. It regularly feels like a platform designed for someone to stand on a stage and express whatever view might give them a moment in the spotlight. Shouting into the digisphere but missing the point of what we as professionals can and should be doing in an era where so much feels at risk, and so many feel worried about what lies ahead of us.

The Accelerator Clinic was the antithesis to this. It was physical networking where you could drink in that positivity that happens when people talk to each other. It was tangible. Even more than the inaugural session back in February – there was a kind of electricity from people interacting and helping each other in the real world, not from behind a keyboard or a phone.

The things said in each room could have profound effects on people’s futures – their businesses, their lives – and they were happening in real time, in real rooms, with real words, real mouths, talking to each other.

From an age perspective, the whole spectrum of experience was there in all its glory.

What was so rewarding was how eager everyone was to hear what others had to say, to learn, and to benefit from those words.

It confounded so many assumptions about today – that there’s a generational gap or a lack of respect for experience, that people don’t understand each other. If you didn’t go to an event like that, you might believe the world is divided. There are people spending a lot of time trying to divide us because that’s how they gain power.

But here was an evening where there were no divisions.

It was an absolute masterclass. It is a vital contribution to the still vital DEI movement, but in its simplest form, it was an event dedicated to a cause to make at least one industry a better place.

It proved that to really achieve that, it has to be physical. It has to bring people together in a single space.

On a personal level, talking to people with vision and energy recharges my batteries. It’s like plugging into the mains – you absorb their optimism and want to feed it. It’s mutual. And it reminds you that there are hopes, challenges, and barriers. There’s no substitute for a physical encounter where both people get something from it.

And what made it even more special was that everyone present knew that their fellow attendees weren’t there because they were forced to come. They weren’t there because their profession is a career advisor or a recruiter. They’re simply volunteers, here to help.

There’s no sense of hierarchy or intimidation. They’re grateful to talk, and I don’t think they feel any pressure. Nnenna sets it up so naturally, and it feels incredibly approachable.

In short, there is nothing that compares to the power of bringing people together. As mentors, we’re committed to the mission of 100 Allies, to support underserved professionals and entrepreneurs, and provide a lift towards leadership that will help them to take their beauty career or brand to the next level. And there is no better way for these voices to be heard, to be lifted, than when they can speak with honesty and vulnerability in a physical setting.

Thank you LinkedIn for letting me say this. But I’d rather say it in real life.