When I talk to my friends about how the group began, I give them a disclaimer that it's a bit of a lengthy story with three parts. I often refer to it as "the trifecta" or "the perfect storm" (I'm a little theatrical)...
As I said in a previous post, I woke up at 4 am during a thunderstorm and couldn't get back to sleep...and that's when the idea came to me. But here are the things that happened in the weeks leading up to it:
A family member had asked me what I wanted to do when I grew up. I'm 36. I'm a mom and I've been in the same career field for 15 years. I assumed that this was all I'd ever do and I was content with that. But it didn't stop me from thinking about her question every day for the next two weeks.
I'd been spending a lot more time with my friends and the women in my family. Every time I'd get home, I would think about how amazing my support system was and how lucky I was to have them in my life. I'd also been forcing myself out of the house a bit more and visiting local businesses that I'd never gone to before. I was having a lot of fun and I just felt happy.
I spent way too much time on TikTok. I ended up seeing a video where the creator asked "what would happen if we made a group where everyone donated one dollar to a randomly selected member each week." Then I went down a rabbit hole and learned all about the "give a dollar" groups out there.
I hard launched the group about 15 hours after the idea came to me with nothing but the notes app on my phone and the approval of four and a half people. While I can't take credit for the "give a dollar" idea, I knew I wanted to take it in a different direction and dedicate it specifically to women in Iowa who were struggling financially. I wrote up my initial pitch, but it didn't feel quite right. While I wanted to support those who needed it, I also wanted to celebrate the women who had made it through life's storms. I wanted the selections to be entirely random and to remove any debate of who "deserved it more."
The first two weeks were messy. If you joined in the early days, thanks for sticking with it. Even though it was a bit of a mess, it was also such a beautiful thing to watch develop. We learned together. We came up with new ideas (featuring a small business every week is my favorite!) And we built a community of support and understanding. I wouldn't change a thing about it and I'm so happy to be here.
-D