Hello everyone! My name is Welina and I am BostonTweetup’s newest intern! On Monday the 11^th of July I went to Om in Harvard Square for the Downtown Women’s Club (DWC): Cambridge Cocktails and Conversations monthly meetup and it was a delightful event! This is the first “meetup” that I’ve attended so I didn’t know what to expect. I came in with an open mind and was pleasantly surprised. I didn’t think I was going to fit into this group given that I am a 22-year-old college student with a passion for social media. Boy was I wrong.  This is one of the many lessons one can learn from attending events.

What is Downtown Women’s Club?
Downtown Women’s Club, founded by a Bostonian entrepreneur Diane K. Danielson, is a business network and career website that makes professional networking affordable, effective, and fun. On the DWC’s website you will find other local clubs in and around Boston.  You can expect a wide range of women with even a further range of occupations: a professional astrologist, a divorce lawyer, few students, a glass artist, and so many more.

The location of the event was perfect for the meetup. Parking was available and it is just a short walk from the Harvard Sq station. Even though there wasn’t any signage outside, the event was easy to find as I simply asked the hostess about the meetup and she led me inside to the group.  The venue itself worked out great for the event because it was held on a less busy night, this is something we recommend that event organizers should consider. There were 16 women at the event, which is a healthy amount and allows everyone to get to know each other.  Inside there was enough open space for the summer breeze to come in. Nametags were not pre-made, however for this casual meetup they didn’t need to be.

Why go?
Noona Joseph and Dani Nordin, the organizers of the DWC Cambridge meetup both emphasized the laidback aura they want visitors to feel, whether it’s your first time there or your 40^th.  Nordin: “The Cambridge Cocktails and Conversation meetup is a place for casual networking, where people can come and go as they please. It is a no strings attached ordeal. So if you enjoyed yourself, consider going again next month.”  The end goal of these meetups, according to Joseph and Nordin, is to meet someone who can help you with a problem you’re having at your job or to just offer a helping hand when it comes to career choices.

Informal meetup, informal location
When Joseph and Nordin first started these meetups in 2009, there was no social gathering or database of professional women who could offer their own services to help fellow women. So they created the monthly Cambridge Cocktails and Conversation meetup. During their preparations for this meetup the organizers made sure there were no other overlapping meetups for this audience on Mondays in Cambridge. As for their choice for Om goes, it connected well with their ideas of the informal character of the meetup and the theme: Cocktails and Conversations. “I liked the whole informal atmosphere of the place. The drinks are delicious and the special – Momo Mondays – they offer works out perfectly for the meetup”, Nordin explained. Momo Mondays at Om are a popular order. It includes six dumplings, two of each kind, and an Om signature drink for $10.  I got the Purple Rain mojito, which was so good!

More information

• Frequency: Cambridge Cocktails and Conversation meets the second Monday of the month in Om
• Registration: You can sign up for DWC Cambridge meetup on meetup.com
• Social: You can find DWC Cambridge on Twitter as well, however the handle @CambridgeDWC doesn’t seem to be active.
• Organizers: Noona Joseph and Dani Nordin

If you’re not able to go to an event, check out bostontweetup.com regularly for more reviews on events.