{Sexy Spotlight} .....Jenny Taylor Honored as a Diva Artista

     On Thursday, May 3, the self-proclaimed “connection agency” based in Chicago called Maven held their “Diva Series: Artistas” at Jbar in Chicago. Our very own Jenny Taylor was to be honored as a “Diva Artista” that evening, and she invited me to attend. I didn’t know what to expect before I went; as usual, I just showed up to see what would happen so I could give you all the scoop!

     I showed up at Jbar, a modest yet elegant lounge downtown on Rush Street, just as the night was to begin. The menus were bound in leather and offered an extensive list of enticing drinks (I had the Lychee Thrill — delicious). In honor of the Diva Series event, all items from the food menu were half price. It was dimly lit, playing lounge music and a video loop of photos and descriptions of the Diva Artistas of the night on several little screens embedded throughout the walls of the main room. Small groups of professional looking men and trendy women mingled in different corners of the room, chatting enthusiastically with glasses in hand.

     When Jenny, clad in a loose black dress, I asked her if she had had to prepare anything — a speech? She told me that even she didn’t really know what to expect, but that she had some friends coming, and before I knew it, she was swept into the crowds. If you know Jenny, she’s Miss Personality, and she was completely in her element as she took full advantage of the meet-and-greet. She introduced me to one of her best friends, Jessica, and yet another Jessica she’d just met — who had previously been honored as a Diva as well! I was thankful to Jenny for the introductions, as it was a great way to get into the groove (I’m not a natural networker like she is, so it really helped me open up).

     The people were all super friendly, since they were there to make great new connections. Once I introduced myself to Sarah, the founder and president of Maven, I asked her to explain what her vision for the event was. “We love to set up intimate networking events where people can make some real connections with one another rather than losing themselves in the crowd in some huge venue,” she told me. “Sometimes I’ll grab the microphone from the DJ and say a little something about the Divas, but I’m not feeling that tonight. It’s pretty mellow today, so I’m just going with that.”

     So I asked her to go more in-depth about what the Diva Series was, in her words. “It’s a way for us to honor talented and up-and-coming women successful in their fields — this one is for ‘Artistas,’ so they come from different areas of art .  (When she found out I was a writer, she dangled the possibility of my becoming a Diva in the future!  This girl is the original Diva in the best sense of the word, with sparkling eyes and a go-get-’em personality.) As a fateful reward for reaching out and talking to the creator of the event, Sarah introduced me to a few others, which cascaded into meeting more friends of friends. There were men and women there from a variety of professions, from fitness to PR to massage therapy to painting, and of course, photography.

     I left the evening feeling so glad I came and happy to have met such lovely and energetic people. If you’re like me, and ever so slightly intimidated by networking events, take it from me: Once you’ve spoken to one person, it sets off a ripple effect that can potentially make you some wonderful connections. (Psst! Since Jenny’s no stranger to networking events, it could be an excellent way to get to know her, too.)

     If you’re interested in checking out the future Diva or Divo Series events, check out Maven on Facebook or take a look at their site.

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