My Meetup Misadventures (Part 1)

Aside from the one group I did successfully organize (MOT), I had one failed attempt trying to organize a Meetup group.

The group description was as follows:

      > This Meetup is for people who are interested in trading for a living.
      > I intend for this to serve as Financial Literacy 101, 201, and 301 all
      > wrapped up together. When through, you should have a good
      > understanding of trading fundamentals, what it means to trade as a
      > business, and what kinds of trading plans might be worthwhile for
      > you to investigate further.
      >
      > The path I just described is one I have traversed. I aim to teach and
      > to serve as a mentor of sorts. I am not currently an investment adviser
      > and I make no guarantees. This is for educational purposes only.
      >
      > The fee will be $300 for 12 group sessions. You should view this as a
      > small investment toward a future of financial freedom. We will discuss
      > this upon initial contact.
      >
      > I am looking for no more than six people who are committed to learning
      > and self-directed investing. Please contact me via website to schedule
      > an initial call to remain in the group. Include your e-mail address and
      > phone number.
      >
      > I now have the skills for wealth management but I have yet to discover
      > an appropriate entryway to the industry. I ultimately aspire to serve
      > clients who are not interested in self-directed investing. To those who
      > are, I hope in the meantime to provide actionable education for a
      > tremendous value.
      >
      > Meetup times and location will be discussed on the initial phone call.

The response from Meetup.com was as follows:

      > Your group was not approved to become a Meetup.
      >
      > We reviewed your group… and it isn’t a fit for Meetup. Meetup does
      > not support groups whose sole purpose is to sell or market goods,
      > services, events, or event spaces.
      >
      > As a result, this group has been closed and taken off of Meetup.

The sole purpose of the group certainly was not to sell or market anything as described here.

I will continue next time.