Networking, to me, is some bit of a necessary evil. I don’t always feel so comfortable at big events with strangers, but I am working on releasing that. I do especially enjoy certain events and this last week, I went to a happy hour that was complete fun.

The event, hosted at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, Texas, was a philanthropy happy hour, held to promote the upcoming White Party fundraiser for LEAP/Lifeworks. It was a garden party full of drop dead gorgeous people who are just as beautiful inside as they are on the outside. Everyone in attendance was a direct volunteer or financial supporter of the LEAP organization and I was blown away by the quality of individuals there.

I was equally impressed with the organizers themselves. Pictured above in the middle is Brett Barnes, the Executive director of Lifeworks. Lifeworks’ mission is to transition youth and families from crisis to safety and success with education, housing resources, job training, life skills, and more. LEAP is one of their umbrella programs that connects executives and business people to Lifeworks via fund raisers, volunteer opportunities, and more.

So, I partied for a cause. I met some great people. I connected with other like minded social entrepreneurs and conscious philanthropists that see compassion as a prerequisite to doing great business. I felt like I was among “my people”. Networking isn’t so bad after all…