In today's newsletter:

• The art of "Making Allies and Believers" to support your big ideas
• Register today for "Starting Strong" and "Manifest Your Mantra"
• Thanks for being patient when our email was hacked
• Still a couple speaker spots left for "Winning Strategies" series
• Donate to WBENC and WBEC Florida funds at year-end
• Save the date for the WBENC Annual Conference in June!

Who Will Support Your Biggest Business Goals in 2026?

The Art of Making

Allies and Believers

WBEC Florida President and CEO Nancy Allen delivered a keynote speech this week at a global conference for women leaders. Her topic, "The Art of Making Allies and Believers," offered some advice we can all use to cultivate those people in our lives who support us when we're creating our future.

At the online G100 Global Summit: Shaping Tomorrow's World, Nancy first explained the differences between people who act as our "anchors" and our "engines." Both are essential in life, but not everyone plays the same role. Your anchors are the ones who keep you grounded and safe. But they also can hold you back, cautioning you to be careful and reminding you that your big, bold ideas might be risky. Your engines, on the other hand, push you forward, cheer for you, and even challenge you to be better.

To cultivate support in your world among your engines, and to gather allies and believers, Nancy gave these 5 tips:

1) Express appreciation often.

2) Share your goals openly.

3) Ask for what you need. Be clear and specific.

4) Offer value back.

5) Stay connected consistently.

Maybe one of these tips resonates with you and reminds you what you need to do in the new year to continue building your sphere of influence and growing your business. To get started, you can download Nancy's worksheet from the webinar here.

Why wait for the new year? Why not start now?

Register today for our two January sessions designed to help you get your year off to a strong start and to choose your mantra or guiding word for 2026. See details on our WBEC Florida Events page.

Have a great week!



Your WBEC Florida team

Register Today! Here's What's Coming

in January and February 2026

Starting Strong: Courage. Clarity. Consistency.

12:30 p.m. Wednesday, January 7, 2026

Manifest Your Mantra for 2026

11 a.m. Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Coffee with a Corporate

10 a.m. Wednesday, February 11, 2026

with VyStar Credit Union

Our Email Was Hacked

Our IT team discovered this week that the email of our of our team members was hacked and that false emails were going out to some people in her contact list.

This is a reminder that if you see anything suspicious coming to you from our organization, please reach out to us before you open any attachments you were not expecting. We have fixed the breach, but this is a good practice for everyday communication.

We thank you for your patience while we were addressing the issue and apologize for any confusion it may have caused.

Thank You for Showing Up!

We're excited to share that we had an enthusiastic turnout last week in response to our call for WBEC Florida members to apply to be presenters for our upcoming "Winning Strategies" series.

If you submitted but did not hear back from us, please reach out and make sure we received your application. If you'd like to submit today and grab one of the last spots for 2026 or get on the waitlist, just download this form and email it back to us as soon as possible.

We can't wait to help our members share your expertise with our world starting in February! Watch for dates and topics on our Events page.

Thank You to Our Sponsors

WBEC Florida and WBENC Anti-Discrimination Policy

As a community of entrepreneurs, corporate executives, and economic development thought leaders, WBENC and the WBEC Florida Regional Partner Organization are committed to the elimination of discrimination in all areas of business and the provision of equal opportunity when accessing capital, contracts, and contacts. In compliance with state and federal laws and regulations, we do not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status in any of our policies, procedures, or practices. This anti-discrimination policy covers admission and access to, and treatment, in all programs and activities.