📍 The Power of Local Events & Low-Key Networking in 2026 — with Arianna Smith

Amelia HrubyWelcome to off the grid, a podcast for artists and small business owners who want to make money online without relying on social media. Hello, and welcome to Off The Grid, a podcast about offline approaches to online business, or at least that's what today's episode is about. I'm your host, Amelia Hruby, and this week on the show, I am sharing your 2026 creative marketing toolkit, which is five episodes in five days where I walk you through the marketing tools, tactics, and trends that I think will be the most impactful for our creative businesses in 2026. Whether you are an artist, a writer, a healer, a speaker, a service provider, or a budding content creator, these are the strategies that I think we could all use to learn more about and experiment with implementing. You can find all of these episodes at offthegrid.fun/2026, or just scroll down in the feed.

You'll see them all right there. And so far, we have covered SEO, AI, and blogging with Meg Casebolt. I have shared my three rules for email marketing and newsletters this year. And today, I am talking to Arianna Smith about the power of local events and low key networking. So this time, we are really getting offline.

This is not an online marketing strategy. It's about the power of being in person with each other. And Ari is here to talk to us about the event series that she's been hosting since 2023, as well as the different types of events that she's experimented with, how her approach to RSVPs has shifted over time, ways that you can structure events to be introvert friendly for yourself and others, how to find venues, and so much more. This is really a conversational master class in thinking about putting together your first event, as well as more advanced ideas around how to make events more accessible to everyone. So I am so grateful to Ariana for coming on the show today, and I can't wait for you to hear this episode.

Before we get into it, I do want to make sure you know about two things real quick. The first is that this podcast is paired with a free leaving social media toolkit, which you can download at offthegrid.fun/toolkit. That toolkit includes three things, my five step plan for leaving any social platform, my list of 100 ways to share your work and life without social media, and a creative marketing ideas database where you can collect ideas for marketing strategies, tools, trends, experiments that you want to try, take notes on those things, like as you're listening to this podcast episode, if you wanna jot a couple ideas down, and then even create a plan for what you're gonna do in the season ahead. How much effort will this take? What level of priority is it?

That database is how I run my marketing plans and experiments since I started my business almost five years ago, and I'm thrilled to share it with you for free in the toolkit. So again, you can grab that free leaving social media toolkit at offthegrid.fun/toolkit. It's also linked in the show notes, and I have made some twenty twenty six updates to it. So if you've gotten it before, but maybe you've misplaced it or you just haven't looked at it in a while, go ahead and grab it again, and I think you'll be excited about everything you find there. The second thing I wanted to make sure you know about is that this week only, the doors to the interweb are open.

The interweb is our annual membership for small business owners of all kinds, including you, a person with a dream of starting your first newsletter and making some sales this year. It's our membership for you too where we have live calls, a rich resource library, and a Slack work and play space to gather creatives who want to share their work and make money online without relying on social media. I love the interweb, and I hear from members all the time that it is a great place to learn creative marketing strategies, to be inspired by what other amazing business owners around the world are doing, and to get the support that you need to make big decisions, like stepping back from social media or taking a break from a platform, as well as to get some cheerleading during those challenging times in small business, which I know many of us have gone through over the past year. So if you could use more marketing education, more community support, and more social media free camaraderie in the year ahead, I would love if you would go to offthegrid.fun/interweb to learn more about our membership and join us for 2026.

We have three to four classes a month for the first six months of this year, and the whole membership, your entire year long cost is only a $199. It's less than $10 per event for the events already on the calendar, plus you'll get a whole second half of the year's worth of events, and you get access to Slack, and you get the resource library. So it's meant to be affordable, accessible, and a space where you can get the support you need no matter what stage your business is at. So come join us in the interweb. Come hang out with me for 2026.

And while you are looking into that and signing yourself up, let me tell you a little bit more about today's guest, and then we'll dive into the episode. Ariana Smith is an IFS certified therapist and witchy wordsmith who helps small business owners grow with intention using intuitive content strategy, human first email marketing, and messaging that feels as magical as it is strategic. With over seventeen years as a helping professional, she understands the emotional side of entrepreneurship, including how trust, authenticity, and genuine connection will outlast any algorithm. Based in Denver, Colorado, she can usually be found hosting low key networking events, roaming a local bookstore, or reminding her partner yet again that there is absolutely no such thing as too many plants. I'm so thrilled to have Ari on the podcast today, and I can't wait for you to hear our conversation.

Let's dive in to this chat about local events and low key networking. Hi, Ari. Welcome to Off the Grid.

Arianna SmithHi, Amelia. I'm so happy to be here.

Amelia HrubyBefore I did Off the Grid, before any of this, I hosted a lot of events in Chicago. Like, my first creative business community was built in person through event facilitation and hosting and cohosting. And, like, a peak moment of my early, like, cool girl career was getting to host an event at the Ace Hotel in Chicago. And I was like, I've made it. We're up here on the rooftop.

This panel is so cool. I have branded snacks. Like, I was like, this is it. And then the pandemic came, and then I moved, and then I have not hosted an in person event in at least six years. Although, I've hosted plenty of online ones since then.

So I'm really excited to a little bit go back to my roots and share some of those stories through our conversation today where we're gonna learn about your background with events, so particularly this one event series that you've been hosting called Therapist Chill Out.

Arianna SmithYou'll find that the pandemic also played a role in my events in a different way. Can you

Amelia Hrubytell me the story of Therapist Chill Out? Like, what is it? Why did you start it? And how has it evolved?

Arianna SmithSo Therapist Chill Out is low key casual networking events and gatherings for therapists in the Denver area or Colorado or Colorado based. And it started in 2023 because I wanted to see people in person. The pandemic brought such isolation. And so I was like, I wanna connect in person. And I wanted to offer myself and maybe my peers, like, a little bit of fun and maybe collective healing as well after what we had gone through the past couple years.

But I didn't want us all to, like, sit around in a circle. I wanted it to be fun. I wanted it to be casual. I wanted it to be really, really, really low pressure to the point that the first year I did it, I had a no RSVP policy. I said, you show up where you don't, and that's that.

So there was people could decide, make game day decisions if they wanted to come or not. And so I started it to initially because I needed it. I needed to connect with folks after that. I also, at that time, had been working as a copywriter for a couple years, and that identity felt a little bit more solidified. And I wanted a way to kinda let my community know that this was something that I offered, but not in a way of like, hey.

I do this, but more like on my bio pay like on the landing page, it's like, hey. This is your this is a little bit about your host. She does this. She does this, and she does this. So it was very almost like a way to let my community know that that was something that was part of my business identity in the moment.

And then I also I think those were, like, the two main reasons as well, like the connection, the in person, and also just allowing myself to be a little bit more seen in how my business identity was evolving in the past couple of years.

Amelia HrubyHow did those first gatherings go? Like, I guess I have some logistical and emotional questions. How did you pick a venue? Why why was it therapist only? And how did it feel to, like, step into that space as a host?

Arianna SmithWell, the first series that I did, I had it one be in Central Denver, one be in North Denver, and then one be in South Denver. So I chose venues that were kind of spread out across. And and then I've also done, like, East Denver and all of that because Denver, everything is thirty minutes away in Denver. And then, also, I didn't want events to center around alcohol, so I didn't choose, like, breweries or, like, cocktail bars even though I, you know, love that. Like, I love a good cocktail lounge or something, but I don't drink.

And a lot of therapists I know don't drink, and so I wanted it to be accessible in that way. So we really started out in coffee shops that I knew and that were kinda big enough to accommodate, like, a group of people, or I would choose, like, casual eateries. So local folks here might know about Edgewater Public Market or Avanti that kind of have this setup where there's, like, a general setup where everyone can go and eat, but then you go to the counters in order to get your food. So then there was really no pressure to buy food if you didn't want to, but if you did, you could. So and all the events were free, so that was really important for me is that they're really the only thing you were gonna be spending as if you wanted to buy coffee or food, and everything else was free besides getting yourself there.

Amelia HrubyVery cool. I think that this is so helpful to hear because finding a space can be a big barrier to hosting an event.

Arianna SmithYes. And the other layers, I mean, I could go on and on about venue selection. So I'm like, but just, you know, you and I were talking before this how I have, like, super hearing. So for me, having a place that was sensory friendly was really important because over time, these events just really unofficially attracted a lot of neurodivergent folks. And so that was another thing I thought about is what how are the acoustics of the place?

Can we hear each other? And then I would also try, if possible, to choose places that had gender neutral bathrooms or single stalled so then you could be comfortable accessing your basic needs while you were there as well. And then, ideally, parking because I failed my parallel parking test when I was 16, and I have still suck at it. So I thought about things that I needed in order to access the space, and then I thought about beyond that too. So one of the venues that we go to, Table Public House, has like, a kids play area.

So I'd let folks know if, like, kids were welcome or not. So I'd keep that in mind as well.

Amelia HrubyI think that's a really beautiful way of just very supportively and organically building in accessibility. And I think that that's something that many folks who are used to operating online don't always think about when they move to an in person or IRL experience, which is that things like parking actually matter a lot. I made a lot of decisions in Chicago about if I was going to to something or not based on if I thought I could park nearby, let alone if there was a parking lot, which most of the time in Chicago, there would not be a lot. I would have to parallel. But like, could I even do that?

Or conversely, is there easily accessible public transit? Because, you know, in some cities, many people don't drive. And so you wanna think about how are people getting there? How does it feel when they arrive? Does the space have, you know, seating that's accessible to many types of people?

Is it sensorially conscious at the very least? Are you not hosting an event in, you know, one of these giant warehouses where you can't hear anybody or where everyone feels uncomfortable? I love what you said about bathrooms. Like, there are so many layers to this that I can tell you built in from the start, which now has me wondering, like, when someone arrives at one of these events, getting ahead a little bit, but, like, how do you greet them? How do you bring people in?

Because showing up to an event for the first time is very scary. And so how have you thought through that part of the gathering as well?

Arianna SmithThis has evolved a lot over the past couple years. So I really feel like and this goes back into access and comfort. And maybe it's just because, like, I have a lot of Cancer and Taurus in my chart. I'm all about, like, I can't engage unless I'm comfortable. You know?

But I think setting expectations and letting people know what to expect is a huge way to ease that anxiety about showing up to a new event. So what I would do is I would often this has shifted, like, a little bit, but often what I would do is I would send out, like, reminder emails, but I would have them click on a document that said exactly where we were located. So then when they got there, they could just click on that document, they could see we're over in the corner by the windows if it was a bigger venue. And then also would offer my phone number if they couldn't find us, and I would kinda keep out for like, kinda look out and keep out for them. So I always and then when people arrive, it's usually kind of a little funny because it's like, oh, are you here for the networking event?

You look like a therapist. And so then that's, like, funny, and I'm you know? So then you can kinda tell who's coming. So I really try to greet them, introduce themselves, and then I give them the lay of the land, usually usually a sign in sheet in the passive head drawings. If we had a yoga event or a book swap, then I'd let them know how that was gonna go.

And then I'd often ask, is there anyone you wanna be connected with? So that if they were looking for someone, I could be like, oh, well, let me introduce you to this person so that there is someone immediately that they could talk to. So always trying to give them the lay of the land and, like, greet them as soon as they arrive and just make them feel comfortable and, like, enthusiastic that they're there.

Amelia HrubyYeah. I heard so many just, like, great gems in what you said. Because one of the things I've always thought with events is that you kind of can't overcommunicate in advance. There are plenty of people who will never read a single thing you send out about the event except like the location and the time, but I think plenty of other people would love for you to lay out every detail for them. It helps them feel comfortable.

I also think that's a very trauma informed approach to provide a lot of information about the space and what will happen there so that people can feel calm and comfortable and regulated, not like everything is a sudden surprise or coming out of nowhere. Right? Nothing worse than showing up to an event and realizing you have to, like, talk about yourself in front of the whole group for five minutes, and you're like, that could be very stressful. So it's not that you can't do that, but telling people in advance. Just sort of like warming those pathways for them, telling them what roads we're going down together.

So I love that you're communicating in advance. You're greeting people when they arrive. And I love this question too of, like, is there anyone you want to be connected with? I've always found with therapists that they need referral partners because, you know, every client has unique needs that you may not be able to suit. So it's kind of like the more therapists you know, the better.

And so I love that you're building that in from your first sort of interaction with someone.

Arianna SmithI am a connector, and my favorite thing is connecting people, like two people that, like, need each other. You know? And I learned about that initially. Malcolm Gladwell has, like, his these archetypes connector salesperson and Maven. And it was it it has been something that I've, like, really, really loved.

And as and this year, I actually did something different and went even deeper with that connector energy. And so what I had folks do is I had them complete a pre event questionnaire. And in that, it was basically, of course, their contact information. But, also, I asked them, like, what are you looking for? Are you looking for referral partners?

Are you looking for biz besties? Are you looking for people in a different niche, in a similar niche? And then often, maybe like a fun question or something, gave them the opportunity to disclose any identities that they wanted other folks to know so that they could, you know, signal to someone else that shared their identity, like, wanna connect with you. And then that would be put into a roster that I would send to folks a day before the event. And that was really helpful for me because I was almost basically I don't wanna say studying the people attendees, but I was getting familiar with the attendees ahead of time.

So then when they showed up, I'd be like, oh, hi. What's your name? And they're like, oh, this is my name. I'm like, oh, you just started in private practice. Right.

Or, oh, you're in this. And so it helped me even create even more of a welcoming environment that I already knew what they were doing. But then also what that allowed folks to do is that they could look at that roster ahead of time and see who was coming, see if there was any dual relationships, which is something we have to think about as therapists is like, is a client gonna be there? Is my client's partner gonna be there? That's freaking awkward.

And also see ahead of time who they wanted to connect with. So if they only had a little bit of time to come or if they felt anxious, they'd be like, oh, this person also loves plants. I'm gonna talk to them about that. Or this person is also a group practice owner. I really wanna know someone else that's doing a group practice.

And then I did for a couple events, I actually took this roster, and I put it into AI, and I had it group people based on similar things. So people that were new to private practice, think, well, people that were looking for collaborators, even fun things like where what part of town that they were all in. And so and then I would go in and kinda update and edit it based on what I knew about the people. And so that was an even another way that people could know exactly, like, who to connect with and what to expect and know that there was probably at least one person there that they could connect with.

Amelia HrubyOh, that's so cool, first of all, and really interesting to hear about the sort of evolution of how you've structured and prepared for the events. And in some ways, I think that also maps, like, the general sentiment around events since the pandemic. Because I think that when people were beginning to go to events again, you know, in 2022, 2023, that sort of, like, low key, low stakes ness was really important. Like, not having to RSVP, being able to make a game time decision. In that time, no RSVP, just show up, felt freeing.

Arianna SmithAnd also, I needed a low admin load too. So over time, I was like, what's the easiest thing for me

Amelia Hrubyto do? Just show up.

Arianna SmithAnd then as it became something that was clearly viable and interesting and needed, then I was like, okay. How can I improve this? But when I just started it, I was like, do people wanna go to this? Do I even wanna do this? And speaking to the, you know, the evolution, when we first started, I especially in 2023, I always gave outdoor options.

Masking was always, you know, welcomed if they wanted to. And I always made a note around attire, like, wear your comfortable clothes because we had been dressing from the waist up for two years. And I don't know about you. Wearing jeans is not still something I wanna do unless I have to. So it was almost like extending that casualness to in person so that we could connect with each other.

Amelia HrubyYeah. Exactly. And what I've also seen though is a shift that I think like where folks only wanna show up for an event where they really feel like they're gonna get exactly what they're looking for and need. Like, actually, that's sort of, like, low stakes. I don't know who's gonna be there.

I don't know if this is gonna do anything for me. People aren't arriving for those events as much anymore. I'm finding that, like, that specificity and intentionality is now what makes for a great event. Whereas, like, if you had brought all this back in 2023, I'm not sure people would have wanted it, and you you didn't want to do it. So I I think there is this interesting evolution that is matching some of our cultural relationship to events these days too.

Arianna SmithThat's such a really cool observation that I didn't make, but you're 100% right. If I had asked people to even just complete, like, five questions, you know, to show up, that would've been too much of a cognitive barrier back then. And now because of what you're describing, if people wanna really know who's coming, what am I gonna get out of this, is this well run, Those admin tasks are reflecting that to folks too. So the question coming up for me next then is a little bit going back to

Amelia Hrubythe beginning where you talked about you started Therapist Chill Out because you wanted connection, and you wanted to talk about the work you do in a few different areas in a new way. And I'm curious, like, at the stage that Therapist Chill Out is at now, it sounds like quite a bit of work. And it sounds like really fulfilling work, but still quite a bit of work. And so that makes me curious, like, what role does this play in your marketing ecosystem? And how do you keep doing this much work for a free event?

Arianna SmithSo that is what a lot of people ask me is they're like, why are you doing this? What's the catch? Like, how is this helping your business? And I'm probably a bad business owner in this respect. Have my measure has always been, is this still fun?

I'm a generator in human design. So when I am doing things that light me up, I have a lot of energy. I also am an enneagram too, so I love hosting. I joke that, like, I'm, like, sheepdog or, a border collie. Like, I really can't socialize unless, you know, I'm kind of corralling everything or something.

You know? So for me, first and foremost, it was something I needed, and it was the way that I kinda wanted to engage with my network, nurture my referral network, do something different than sitting behind a desk all day. Like, the in person was valid for me too in my business. I am at a place now with therapists chill out where, you know, I do have to think more about, like, okay, how is this fitting into my ecosystem? But what I have found within my business model, when I am doing things that are fun and feel good to me, I find that business kind of flows in that way.

And that's not saying I'm not intentional, but I would get work from this. Like, people would reach out. They'd wanna talk to me when they said, oh, you're a copywriter. Can I talk to you for a little bit? And so it naturally did lead to work in that respect, and then it also allowed me to grow my list.

So whenever people RSVP, like, there would be an option. I'm really big into consent. So anyone who RSVPs is not automatically added to my newsletter, which probably slows down my list growth, but then I give them the option to opt in to my newsletter. So then if they do RSVP to therapist chill out and opt in, then I know they're engaged and they're following along. So I would say the way that this has, like, served my business is that it has brought clients because I'm doing something that's fun for me.

It has made business more interesting for me and more sustainable and more fun. It is a way to nurture and grow my own referral network as well. And then in the past year, I was became a little bit more strategic about how I could use it to grow my newsletter a little bit more. And I think the next phase I'm not sure what the next phase is gonna be actually after this. But for the most part, it was just fun, which I know is probably not a sustainable business model for everyone.

But that was kind of my guiding factor when I first started. And then as it became more viable and more interesting, like, you know, the first event, only, like, six people came, and it was people mostly people I knew. And then this past season, we had probably about a 100 people come over several, like, probably, like, six or seven events. You know? And so I kinda had to wait for it to reach this tipping point before I was like, oh, okay.

How can I think about this strategically? You

Amelia Hrubyknow, I might hazard to say that fun is the only sustainable business model. I feel like, obviously, there are other elements there, but I think at the end of the day, especially for generators, if we're not enjoying ourselves, we're not gonna keep doing something. Like, I personally have very little ability to force myself to do things for my business or any other area of my life, and definitely not in my marketing. So I feel like fun is a huge key there. And I also love what you said at the very end about how it has been fun.

It has stayed fun. You've evolved it so it could keep being fun. And now you've reached a tipping point where there are, like, actually enough people to think more strategically about it. I find that often when we're trying something new or doing an experiment, it can be tempting to try to be, like, super strategic about it so that you get exactly what you want from it, but that defeats the purpose of an experiment to me. Like, I think that being in touch with what are the ways I want this to feel, and how am I gonna do it, is much more important.

And, like, that's what makes it an experimental method, and rather than this is the outcome that I'm hoping for.

Arianna SmithWell, and the other layer that you can think of, I'm just drawing another connection. I think sometimes I'm more strategic than I realize. I'm like, oh, I was having fun, but also I was really intentional on my landing page. Like, I was really intentional on my landing page that it was almost even just my landing page was a way to market because I didn't just have, you know, just like a name and sign up. Like, I did a full landing page the second year I added testimonials from folks, and it gave people a sense of like, oh, like, this is how Ari is a copywriter.

Like, if she's writing this landing page for therapist, chill out. And then when I was sending emails out, they're like, oh, if this is how Ari is an email marketer. So in a way, even though I wasn't marketing directly, I was basically getting to show some of my best work and put my best foot forward. And I think that naturally can help people get curious and build trust to working with you even if it's years later.

Amelia HrubyYeah. Absolutely. I mean, this is 100% like what off the grid does for softer sounds. Right? It's like by having a really great podcast for the types of people I really care about and end peers with, then when they're interested in starting their own podcast, they will come through to be like, oh, I know Amelia does this work, and I'm interested in how she does it and maybe working with her.

And I found that I think this is a smart business strategy, and also it can be a pretty slow one. Like, you know, I didn't book any softer sounds clients from the first one season or two seasons or maybe even three seasons of Off the Grid, to be honest. Like, it takes time to build trust and authority in, like, sort of showing how you work and showing up. But I do find that if you put that time in, it's very long lasting, and it's definitely not fleeting the way that focusing on some of the more, like, ephemeral and online strategies can be. Like, obviously, going viral is super fleeting, but sometimes even a focus on SEO or another strategy can be fleeting because the rules can change and your traffic disappears.

Right? So I love events and low key networking online or offline for that, like, relationship building and growing slowly in these ways?

Arianna SmithWell, and it's, I think, the easiest way to give someone an experience. You know? I was kind of, like, alluding to this cliche, but people remember how you made them feel. And so they remember if things were easy. They remember if things were fun.

They remember if you were friendly to them. And I think in this age where trust is hard to come by, there is something about being in person and being able to use your full skill set, like your full intuition, your full body, your full nervous system to be like, how do I feel around this person? Can I trust them? Do I wanna work with them? And I think that that is so so valuable that, like, we kind of overlook it sometimes because we're like, oh, well, I'm we're vibing on Zoom, and this feels good.

But it almost like in person events bring the body along to the experience and to kind of making decisions around your business or showing up with who you wanna connect with. Absolutely.

Amelia HrubyI mean, I think there's just, like, three d or even four d ness to, like, being in person in time with people that you don't get from being on Zoom or listening to a podcast. And and I mean, I say that as someone who does no in person events for my business and who is doing everything online at this stage. But as I mentioned before, like, that comes out of a background where everything was in person and very little was online. So I've seen sort of this spectrum of how we build. And one thing I will say is for me, like, the longevity of memory is very different when I meet people in person.

Like, I could remember and recognize people that came to an event I did in Chicago eight years ago, and I struggle to remember somebody I had a Zoom coffee chat with eight months ago. That to me says a lot about what it means to actually, like, have, like, my literal atoms interact with another person's atoms instead of just my eyeballs look at them on Zoom.

Arianna SmithYes. And, like, get a sense of them and, I don't know, see the side of their face, you know, for goodness sakes. Mhmm.

Amelia HrubyOr the back of their head.

Arianna SmithYes. Yes. Or how tall they are. You know? Like, I don't know about you.

I'm five nine. Same. Yeah. But even just people knowing the size of your body and just like how you carry yourself that adds to that deeper intimacy of getting to know them.

Amelia HrubyI wanna ask you a question about like an objection that I get to events sometimes, which is that a lot of people will say to me that events are just for extroverts. And, you know, I am an extrovert. So when I hosted events, I just loved it. And even now, when I host events virtually, you could ask my partner, like, get off like an interweb call, I am buzzing around the house. I am like lit up.

So when people tell me events are just for extroverts, I'm kinda like, well, I can neither confirm nor deny this, like, as an extrovert. But I know that you don't necessarily identify as an extrovert. You're maybe more of an introvert by nature. So I'm curious, like, how do you approach hosting events as an introvert? Like, you've talked a lot about how you take care of the people who attend, but how do you take care of yourself in this process?

Arianna SmithI think that introverts and extroverts and ambiverts all have their own strengths when it comes to hosting. And for me, I often joke that I'm an extrovert trapped in an introvert's body. Or I'll say my brain my my brain will make promises that my body can't keep. And so, you know, I am a double Gemini and a Libra rising. There's a lot of air happening.

I could just talk forever. But I'm also neurodivergent. I get overstimulated pretty easily, and I manage chronic pain and PMDD. And so my body isn't always on board with what my Gemini self wants to do. So I think that if you have limited capacity, capacity, if you have limited social energy, that does not automatically exclude you from being a really great host or hosting really great events.

And the theme in all of this that you'll hear in my things is I'm like, it has to work for me first in order for it to be sustainable. So if you're an introvert or maybe you have other things that limit your capacity, maybe you have two young children or, like, you're caregiving an elderly, like, you just have something that is limiting your capacity, Make it work for you first, and then it will be more sustainable for you. And it doesn't have to be ongoing. You and I, I think our very first conversation talked about how appealing series are for folks and having it be limited. And so with Therapist Chill Out, I only did three events in the summer the first two years.

It was just this year that I extended it into the fall because there was a lot of interest, and I had energy for it. And I was really excited for it. But if I had started with doing all those events in the very first year, that wouldn't have worked for me. So I think there is an aspect of if you're an introvert, you it's the still thing you wanna focus on quality over quantity. And I think, you know, if you have social anxiety or if you're, you know, highly sensitive, you're probably gonna be thinking of all these little details that other people dealt as well.

So I think there's a lot of strength that you'd have if you identify as introvert with hosting an event. And, also, you know, we can talk more about this. It doesn't have to be a networking event. Like, if small talk is not your idea of fun and granted, I did networking events for therapists. Like, we're diving into, like, trauma bonding in the first two minutes.

And I'm like, it's not small talk for when you're doing it with therapists, but it doesn't have to be a networking event. It could be something else.

Amelia HrubySo when I think about types of events to host, you know, I I think of, like, a networking event where people are kind of milling around and maybe have some questions to ask each other or maybe get matched up with each other to ask, like, to chat about things. I think about, like, a class where you teach something or a workshop where you do something hands on together. I've hosted panels where everyone comes to listen to people talk. So are there other types of events that you've hosted or things that you're thinking of doing in the future that you're excited about?

Arianna SmithI will share some of the most popular themes I've seen. So we did a yoga and chill. So I partnered with Aileen Gold, who's a local therapist and yoga teacher in Denver, which is another this is another tangent. Like, local events can be a wonderful opportunity to collaborate and expand your reach. So Aileen taught really calm, trauma informed yoga class, and then we went to a nearby coffee shop to chat afterwards.

And so that way, you know, we didn't have to do any talking. In fact, there was no talking in the first part. And then you could go and talk if you wanted to, but it had a different quality because we'd all kinda had this experience together, and then we got to talk about it. The other two most popular events were book swaps. And so what was really nice about that that I noticed is that it was an automatic conversation starter.

And, I mean, who doesn't love to talk about books? Once again, this was all for me. Did I just do it for me to talk about final my book recommendations? The jury's out. And then we also did a tarot event.

So then people were kind of reading and looking at cards together. So it wasn't your traditional, like, chatty chat. But I think that there could also be I know a local therapist who does, like, a rage and chill. So they go to a rage room, and then it's, like, facilitated afterwards. And then you can also do craft nights together.

You can do escape rooms, although that would probably require a cost unless you got a sponsor. So there's I feel like the possibilities are endless, and it's really just like, what would you like to do in a group is really the question I would ask.

Amelia HrubyYeah. Oh, I love leading with that question. And really what I'm hearing from you there is, like, it's very nice to have an activity to do with a group that leads into a more conversational or chill setting afterwards. I do agree that, like, that kind of commonality is really nice. And so I'm just thinking about, like, what are the activities or themes or topics or books that you enjoy?

How do you bring those to a specific group of people like therapists, like podcasters, and sort of that can be all you need? Like, it's very simple, but it provides just enough commonality that people feel like they've done something together, and then you can talk about it afterwards. Because it's much harder, I speak from experience here, to facilitate a conversation without setting the stage of that shared experience first. Like, to just bring a bunch of people who don't know each other into a room and have a shared conversation, that requires a lot of facilitation and event skill. But you can sort of shortcut that by having a book swap or a yoga class or a rage room or a movie to watch first.

Arianna SmithAnd I joke, you know, therapists are pretty low maintenance when it comes to networking. Know? Like, I'm like, am I cheating? Because we are really comfortable, like, going deep and having conversations and having this shared experience. And, you know, in the very beginning, you asked, like, why therapists?

And it was because I really wanted a space for therapists to talk about what it had been like to be a therapist during the pandemic because it was a horrible time for everyone. And there was something about being a therapist during that time that really, I wanna say fractured a lot of mental health professionals around what they believed in the system, what they believed in the world, what they believed in how they could show up. And so that initially is why I wanted it to be just therapists. And that has shifted where now I've started to invite people beyond that. And as you're kind of pointing out, you know, who you invite also can denote what the activity is and how much energy you have to put into it.

Right?

Amelia HrubyYeah. Absolutely. And I think it's why there is kind of a difference in hosting an event that's sort of, like, open to the general public for anybody versus, like, hosting an event that is more specifically for a certain type or group or profession or, you know, even more than, like, location. Right? You're not just hosting, like, a chill out for the people of Denver.

Like, that would be very, very different. And I'm curious then. This, like, kinda takes me into a question about how you share and market these events because that's something, like, a fear I hear from a lot of people who think about hosting an event. It's like nobody's gonna come. And if nobody comes to your Zoom event, you just, like, quietly close the window and, like, get to have your private feelings about it.

But if you're, like, out in public being like, I'm here to host the event, and nobody comes, like like, that's really scary. I mean, it's it's like, it makes me feel a little stressed to think about it. And so I'm curious, like, how you handle that type of fear anxiety and then how you market your events such that people do come. How are you getting the word out about these things?

Arianna SmithYeah. Yeah. I mean, I still even if like 20 people RSVP, I still have a part of me that's like, no one's gonna come. You know? It's like the event is at like 09:00 and it's like 09:01 and I'm like, no one's gonna come.

No one's gonna come. And then they come. You know? So that fear is always there and it's important to, I don't know, maybe normalize that. Like, there's always gonna be that middle school part of you in the cafeteria that's like, no one is gonna sit with me.

I have no one to sit with. Maybe I'm just speaking for myself.

Amelia HrubyI think it's very common.

Arianna SmithWhat I did when I first started is I had some friends come. And I said, I'm really afraid no one's gonna come. Would you please come? Or I would ask people to cohost. And then if no one came, just we got to have a good time together and, you know, segueing into how to market it.

So this, I think, is the biggest misnomer. And, like, people, if they hear nothing else from this, for your very first events, I really think you're gonna have to send personal invites. I really think you're gonna have to text your people, email your people, and say, I'm hosting this. In my case, I'm hosting this series. I wanna see you.

I wanna connect you with my people. Do you wanna come? Here's the page. So I probably sent maybe, like, 30 or 40 invites, like personal invites to people that I knew. And it was really natural to do that because it was like, hey.

We just went through this thing. Like, do you wanna meet up? Do you wanna connect? Like, I wanna do this. So it was an it was a way to kinda reconnect to my network after what had happened during the pandemic.

And so that is what I attribute to a lot of the success is I was sending personal invites, and I was saying, hey, will you send this to other people? So very much using that word-of-mouth. The other thing that I got a lot of success from, which I hate to say, was Facebook groups for therapists. So I would not be on Facebook if it was not a place where a lot of therapists hung out. And we had lot of Facebook groups where we find referrals for each other, where we post things.

So I posted in a lot of local Facebook groups about that, and so that would help people too. And then I also at that time had a newsletter. Well, I still do have my newsletter. So then I let my newsletter know. And there's a couple people on my newsletter that are like, oh, wait.

Ari's in Denver? I've been getting her newsletter for years, and she's in Denver, and I'm in Denver. So that was another way. And then and and then now over time, actually, I don't know how because I don't know anything about SEO. Or, like, now people Google it, and it the landing page comes up.

So now there's organic SEO that's happening when people Google it. And then those were the main oh, and then also if people would reach out to network with me, I would be like, hey. Like, I don't really have time or capacity because I'm in therapist chill out season. Do you wanna come to an event? So it was really just telling everyone about it and really kinda almost like hustling a little bit in that way, but not entirely.

Amelia HrubyYeah. I've always thought that most successful events are built on a bedrock of existing relationships. And so if people are interested in hosting events, normally, if they're asking my advice about it, like, I tell them is to, first of all, go to a lot of events to build relationships with people who go to events, and then continue those relationships such that you have the people to text when you're ready to host your first thing.

Arianna SmithYeah.

Amelia HrubyThis is essentially how I built my entire business, and in Chicago, my entire social network. Because I volunteered for things, I showed up for things, I went to things. I was always the person who would come to your thing. So then when I hosted my first thing, it like sold out so easily because I had always shown up for other people. And I know that not everyone has the capacity to be the person who's like going to all this stuff.

I mean, at this point, you know, I was in my mid twenties, so I had a lot of energy to go to events, which I don't now. But I do think that however you, dear listener, build relationships, like kind of putting in those reps, if we wanna put it that way, like putting in that time, putting in that care before you then start asking, selling, inviting people to things. I think that that like, if you're afraid of no one coming, doing that work first will help get you to a point where people are gonna wanna show up for you. Now, there's also another way to host events that's just like, I don't know anybody, so I'm putting myself on Meetup, Eventbrite, every public directory, and I am just like cold turkey, like, going for it. And I am gonna let the strangers arrive, and I am gonna be there with them.

And I think that that can honestly, it can work too. It's just a lot more sort of like wild card and maybe a higher possibility that you might host something that nobody comes to. But I think that at that point, it has to do with, like, your comfort level and your capacity for, like, building relationships in advance or just going with whatever happens when you arrive.

Arianna SmithWhat I'm kind of sitting with as you're talking is it makes me think that the best events are kind of something that you see in addition to what you're already doing. Like, they're kind of a way to, like like, in my case, it was like, well, I wanna I wanna nurture my people in this certain way, and I wanna experiment with showing up in this way. And then in your case, it was like a way to eventually, like, you got to know all these people, and then you're like, hey, here's me, and here's what I'm about. And I think that especially when you're just beginning too, when

Amelia Hrubyyou don't know what you're about yet, like, helps to figure that out. It goes back to your point that, like, you did it because it was fun. Like, if someone's listening to this and they're like, everything about this sounds horrible to me, don't host an event. Like, you you don't have to. You know?

Right? Like, no one's here neither of us is saying, like, everyone should host events. And I think that the best events are hosted by people who enjoy events, so you've probably have gone to a few events because you enjoy them. And maybe you enjoy classes, or maybe you enjoy workshops, or maybe you enjoy maybe there's a type of event you enjoy the most, and so you start by hosting that type of event. And I think that that's just an important key in all of our businesses and all of our marketing or offerings that we're doing.

And I think that there are also different ways to lean into your interest and specificity and energy. Like, for instance, I can think of this as an an in person event, but inside of the interweb, I host free coaching days, like, two or three times a year. And those days are days where I have six to eight, like, back to back thirty minute sessions, one on one with members. And every time I get on one, members are like, I don't know how you do this all day. And I'm like, well, I would never recommend anyone else do this, but I love this.

This works really well for me. But I share that to say that as much as you and I, Ari, are giving a lot of, like, sort of templates and best practices and things that can go well for events, I also invite listeners to, like, blow up the models and host an event that sounds like something you would wanna go to.

Arianna SmithOh, I love this. So starting with what is something that you need and you want. But I also like if it doesn't sound exciting to folks, that's great. But even I kinda had to be encouraged a little bit to do an event. And and maybe there's a medium between, like, if this does not sound fun, don't do it.

If this sounds exciting, do it. If you're curious, like, maybe talk to a few trusted people to be like, oh my and they would probably say, oh my gosh. You'd be amazing at this. Because sometimes we especially if you're more introverted or anything or don't really see yourself as kind of like a host, like, there could be some things about yourself that you're not seeing. And I also like for me, I think the biggest benefit that therapist Chilla has given me is you don't have to be online in order to, like, connect with people and, like, grow your business.

And, of course, in your case, on like, in this case, on social media. Right? Like, you don't have to. And I'm not on Facebook except for these groups, but I'm really trying to get off Facebook completely. And so in order to do that, though, I'm gonna have to think like, okay.

Well, how can I reach these folks in a different way? There might be enough critical mass for that at this point to do that.

Amelia HrubyYeah. Absolutely. It's like maybe you've had enough people who've attended that they become the word-of-mouth activators of it, and you don't have to be there anymore.

Arianna SmithYeah. Or maybe the amount, you know, this last time, like, it was, like, 10 to 20 people, 10 to 15 came. That feels good for me. Like, I had one event where almost like 30 people came, and I was like, on paper, you know, they're like, the more the better, but I couldn't even get to know anyone individually and talk to them. I like my events to be intimate.

And so maybe that's another permission that we can give the listeners is, like, your event doesn't have to be a 100 people, 50 people, or even 20 people. It can be six people that you get to know really intimately, and it gets to go deep and have that depth.

Amelia HrubyYeah. Absolutely. I think especially if you're, like, coming out of a lot of online stuff or, like, especially if you are doing everything online, that sort of, like, more is always better. It feels like it always applies on the Internet because we're all just, like, little avatars in a Zoom room or little emails in your inbox. Right?

But when you're actually with people and physical bodies in person, there is, like, a real cap on, like, how how many people can the room hold? How many people can a conversation hold? How many people can you say hi to in under sixty minutes? And thinking that through, I think, provides, like, this really organic, just sort of, like, material limit on, like, how much can this event hold. And we don't see that as much, or, like, I think that's harder to sense into when it's all virtual as oppo like, the only limit I have is like my Zoom room will only hold a 100 people.

So that's like my limit. But when you're in person, it's not the same. So I really like that note. It can be a nice reminder that like, 20 is enough, 10 is enough, six is enough, two is enough.

Arianna SmithYeah. You know, the other thing when I was preparing for this talk with you, Amelia, I was had this moment to like think through, you know, it's not often that I get to think through like years and years of this event and reflect on this. I'm so often, you know, naturally, like all of us future focused. But when I look back at Therapist Chill Out and doing these events, I have always been surprised in the best ways possible. Like, the best things that happened were when I didn't have expectations around how many people would come, when I wouldn't focus on, like, vanity metrics or anything like that.

Because the very first event I held, only six people came. But one of them was a friend that I had lost touch with during the pandemic, and we were in a consult together. And she's like, oh my gosh. We should get the consult group together again. And since then, we meet, like, every other month for dinner.

And that wouldn't have happened if perhaps there was, like, 20 people there and I didn't have a chance to connect with her. And then the other like, I just think being surprised is the best way you can do like, that's my motto is like, what what good can happen of this? You know? And there's definitely been events that have not gone. Like, there's been hiccups around.

So that didn't destroy the event, though. Like, that actually kind of like, the yoga event, there was a hot yoga class before the event, and we didn't have enough time to cool the room down. And so we're like, you don't know this, but we're doing hot yoga today. And it was just like, it was so, like, embarrassing, of course, but, like, we joked about it. And, you know, some people couldn't do the whole class because it was too hot for them.

But, like, no one complained. Like, it was just like we roll we rolled with it, you know, and we learned from it. So it doesn't have to go things don't have to go perfectly in order for them to be memorable.

Amelia HrubyYeah. I I mean, I find that in fact, when they go imperfectly is my maybe when they're the most memorable in, like, fun and interesting ways. Like, we remember when we had to kinda, go through it together even more than when it was all, like, easeful and quote, unquote perfect in the moment. But, of course, I I love this openness to surprise. It feels threaded back in with the, like, urge to experiment or the sort of encouragement that I'm offering everyone to experiment.

Like, be intentional in the planning, but let go of your ideas of the outcome, especially once you get to the event. Like, what's going to happen is going to happen, and being with the people I think is most important. And, you know, I'm just reflecting, like, part of what I love about this conversation is honestly, like, what I love about Off the Grid, which is on so many other creative business podcasts or marketing social media podcasts, if they were gonna talk about events, you know, it would be with somebody who had hosted these, like, huge conferences and, like, big things and, like, was an event planner. But I'm just much more invested in each of us who run a business finding ways to connect with more people. And I think that, you know, with this episode falling in our 2026 marketing toolkit series, I would love to see many and more of the off the grid listeners hosting some type of event in the year ahead.

And I know your focus, Ari, is in person events. I myself am not really doing those, although I think there will actually be a few book pop ups this year in precisely the way you run Therapist Chill Out, like coffee shops and like arrive if you like and things like that. But I think even if you're hosting it virtually, it's a really beautiful skill to learn to try gathering people and to try connecting and to experiment with it on any scale. And I think we all start with the small, and I like that we've we've really kind of honed in on that just enoughness in this conversation together.

Arianna SmithYeah. It doesn't have to be big.

Amelia HrubyNo. Your event doesn't have to be big, and your business doesn't have to be big. It can, but it doesn't have to be.

Arianna SmithAnd it also doesn't have to be spectacular. You know, when you think about therapists chill out, I do surveys. Like, I listen to what people need, and I just, like, respond to that. And I find that that's a much better strategy than, like, my thinking mind. It's just like, oh, maybe I should do this or x y z.

So I guess I also wanna invite folks to even almost set their business brain aside and just see what feels exciting to them, fascinating to them, creative to them, and give it a try. And if it fits into your business, great. But if it doesn't, that's okay because I think people just wanna connect authentically. And if they sense an agenda, if they sense that you want to do something in a certain way, I think that kinda blocks them from really experiencing you as, like, your core authentic self.

Amelia HrubyYeah. I think that over strategizing and over anything ing really doesn't work in events. It feels very artificial. And when you're gathering with people, that feeling never feels good. And, you know, we've unpacked here so many ways that you can be intentional, you can plan, you can do so much, but I think that often the, like, quote unquote smartest event or that you could do, honestly, the quote unquote smartest kind of anything you can do in your business often falls flat because it's not alive.

And I can often be heard saying, I think, that, like, I think that the two most generative places to look for ideas in your business and your creative practice are what are the things that people have always asked you to make? And is there anything you're like, oh, yeah. People do want this. I can create that. And then what are the things that you've always wanted to exist that you can't find?

And I think the marriage of those two things has guided you in Therapist Chill Out, and it has also led to all of my best work.

Arianna SmithI would also add the question of who do I wanna hang out with or who do I wanna connect with. For me, it was who do I wanna hang out with because that's how casual, but who do I wanna connect with?

Amelia HrubyYou know, going back to the book swap, like, think it's very different to just host a book swap versus to host a book swap for therapists.

Arianna SmithWell, and this also highlights that that you can use these events as a way to feel out who your ideal client is. And also, for one of my events, I did a drawing. Like, people entered a drawing in order to get, like, a free call with me too. So you can also even extend it beyond that too and keep the follow-up going.

Amelia HrubyYeah. Oh my gosh. I love building a giveaway into an event. I love to get my little spinning wheel on the screen. I also love, like, in person bingo spinners.

I'm a big fan of those if I'm doing an in person event. So I I love there's just, nothing to me. There's nothing more fun than surprising and delighting people, and people love to win stuff.

Arianna SmithOh my gosh. I'm all about the dopamine. I am all about the incentive.

Amelia HrubyI have loved this conversation, and I hope that it inspires folks to think about what type of event they might host. Maybe come hang out with us in the interweb and tell us about the events you have in mind. I'm always happy to hear about ideas and chime in with thoughts. But for now, if listeners wanna connect with you further, I mean, obviously, if they're in the Denver area and they're a therapist, they can come to Therapist Chill Out. But if they're just a general person on the Internet listening to this show, how can they find you otherwise?

Arianna SmithWell and I would say if they're in the Denver area or surrounding, we have people come from Boulder and Colorado Springs, and so that will probably therapists chill out will probably be going going beyond, but that's something I'm gonna be thinking about this month. And if they're even just like small business owners and like our vibe, they and they wanna be around a bunch of people, like, empathetically nodding their head and wearing cardigans, like, they would be totally welcome. So but if you're not in Denver, a good way to stay in touch with me is my newsletter, The Weekly Wordsmith, and you can get there on my website, arianasmith.com. And in my newsletter, I share, you know, firsthand accounts of running a business with someone with limited capacity, you know, like wild creativity, but also chronic pain and copywriting, messaging, always a dash of woo as Amelia and I were talking about before as well. And, of course, events that I'm hosting.

Amelia HrubyBeautiful. Well, thank you so much for bringing all of that to the podcast. You will also be hosting an event inside of the interweb, teaching a workshop this spring. So folks, doors to the interweb are open right now. You can come on in if you want to be with us when that event about events happens.

It's gonna be very meta. I can't wait. And, otherwise, thanks to you for being here. Thanks to listeners for being here. We have one more episode in your 2026 marketing toolkit coming your way tomorrow.

It's gonna be all about trends. I'm very excited to share it. And until then, we will see you off the grid.

That was an abridged version of social media by Surfer Boy and Wreck Tangle. To hear the entire song, find Surfer Boy on Spotify or head to the link in the show notes. Thanks so much to them for sharing the song with us, as well as to Melissa Kaitlyn Carter who sings our theme song that you hear at the start of every show. I'm your host, Amelia Hruby. And if you enjoyed this episode, I hope you will download the free leading social media toolkit at offthegrid.fun/toolkit.

Until next time, I will see you off the grid.