What do you do when you find yourself contemplating a career direction that looks nothing like the one your family, your community, your company – or even you yourself – ever imagined? Career and development planning has its place, but when you’re truly taking charge of your own career rather than simply being a company man or woman, you’re bound to need to make some leaps of faith. In this session, find out how to:

• Get in touch with what you truly want and value in your work life
• Conduct experiments to test out new avenues with minimal risk
• Effectively rep your decision to family, friends, and advisors, and
• Get support along the way

This breakout is presented by Kate Holmquest of the Wright Leadership Institute.

About the Presenter

Kate Holmquest is a curriculum developer, administrator, and training facilitator at the Wright Leadership Institute. She began her career as Director of Church relations for her alma mater, Augustana College, in Sioux Falls, SD, before attending theology school in Chicago. Kate describes herself as a “former future pastor” in the Lutheran church since having joined the Wright Leadership Institute in 2006, and for the most part has made her own rules by being willing to have every move be potentially the biggest mistake she’s ever made.

Many people make career decisions based on an ideal picture of the balanced life. If you’ve ever caught yourself saying something like, “My job is just the thing I do to pay my bills,” or if you religiously defend a separation between work and “life” (as if work is not part of life), you can benefit from a new perspective. Your satisfaction and engagement at work is directly tied to your happiness in life overall, and the skills that matter for career success are learnable and applicable across all areas of life.

This breakout is presented by Kirsten Zoub of the Wright Leadership Institute.

About the Presenter

Kirsten Zoub is the Director of Sales, a Lead Faculty and Business Coach for the Wright Business Institute and the Wright Leadership Institute. Kirsten is a leading edge trainer in human performance in areas such as leadership development, sales, networking, relationship success and personal development. A serial entrepreneur, Kirsten’s wealth of experience allows her to serve a diverse population of business professionals, entrepreneurs and sales executives. She successfully started and ran businesses in a variety of fields such as freight brokering, art publishing, real estate, and health and wellness.

The average person will change jobs at least ten times over the course of a lifetime. The first 100 days in a new position provide unique opportunities for leadership and success, as well as many traps for missteps. This session offers a solid framework and tangible action steps to maximize the critical first months in your new role.

This breakout will be presented by Leah Marshall of Education Entrepreneurs.

First impressions are everything. So are the second, the third, and every other. When we take on a new role in our organization—or when we join a new organization—we immediately set the tone for our image and our success. How do we ensure that we are being seen in the way we want others to see us? Are others on your team supporting your goals and initiatives? When it comes to moving our career forward, the ability to take giant leaps ahead is critical.

Attend this event and learn to:

• Recognize and take advantage of your opportunities
• Become a thought-leader on your team
• Build a network of personal champions

With the job market in 2010 more competitive than ever, how are you setting yourself apart?

This breakout session will be presented by Dan Conrod of Dale Carnegie Training.

About Dale Carnegie Training

Dale Carnegie Training partners with individuals and organizations to realize measurable business results by improving performance in leadership, sales, team member engagement, customer service, presentations and process improvement. Dale Carnegie programs are available in more than 25 languages and are held in 75 countries around the world. Dale Carnegie works with 400 of the Fortune 500 companies, and his programs have been experienced by over 7 million people.

Learn how to build and execute a sales plan for finding and getting the job you want!

The job market and recruitment process has changed. To succeed in this new and dynamic environment, savy job seekers need to view themselves as others see them. This breakout session will provide you with the tools and strategies necessary to succeed in today’s brand focused economy.

The following topics will be covered:

• How to evaluate yourself as a product
• What are your 11 herbs and spices
• Where can you leverage your skills for maximum value
• Tools for building your sales success plan
• Know your audience
• 2 or 3 secrets for success you won’t hear anywhere else

If you are serious about your future and ready to make a difference, this presentation can and will make a difference.

This breakout session will be led by Steven Brooks, Founder and CEO of Guugos.com.

As young professionals, we’re constantly trying to convince others to understand and accept our ideas. We’re sometimes presenting to our bosses, to our clients, to prospective employers and even to relatives and friends. In any of these situations, we need to know how to present our ideas (and ourselves) in a manner that is clear, concise, interesting and persuasive.

The following topics will be covered:

• Presenting a positive image
• Controlling nervousness
• Understanding your listener
• Presenting your ideas from the listener’s point of view
• Controlling Q&A sessions
• Obtaining approval and action
• Eliminating boredom and overkill
• And much, much more

So -  if you’re trying to persuade your boss to accept an idea, or trying to persuade a prospective employer to hire you, or trying to persuade a friend to join you on a trip to Las Vegas, then this session is one you won’t want to miss!

This seminar will be led by Mr. Joel Hochberger, president of Effective Presentations Inc. Joel has conducted Presentation Skill Workshops in 39 countries and has trained over 25,000 individuals.

The session is interactive, entertaining, and of immediate use.  In fact,  George Harmon, Associate Professor of Journalism at Northwestern University, told us, “I found Joel’s appearance to be informative, scholarly, useful and highly entertaining.”

Navigating your twenty-something life can be hell. No matter how successful you may have been in school, ‘the real world’ is a whole new ballgame, and no one ever taught you the rules. In this breakout session you will:

• Discover the one skill that determines your success (you already have it!)
• Learn how to leverage your failures
• Overcome self-doubt and self-sabotage
• Master the three-point system that guarantees success

FREE GIFT for attendees!

This workshop will be presented by Dayna Schmidt, the Quarter Life Coach.

This is NOT your parents’ version of finance; this is finance for our generation.  It’s radically different and it works! With the right money mindset, you’ll gain a better perspective on how to spend wisely for your future without missing out on all the fun today. Learn what it takes to be successful with your money in this simple and entertaining crash course.

• Find out how much you TRULY earn
• Stop keeping up with Joneses – an easy way save for your toys
• Avoid over-borrowing, over-spending and going into the Abyss
• How to measure your net worth…it’s not measured in dollars
• Budgeting sucks, but it can also be rewarding

This workshop will be presented by Michael Algrim, founder of TheMindsetGame.com.

Today’s marketplace is unfortunately one of the toughest for young professionals. Jobs are scarce and companies have very high expectations. There are several things that you can do to market your skill set and “stand out” among the many applicants to land your dream job. Additionally, when one makes their first job change, there are several factors to consider when giving notice, considering a counter offer and making sure you transition to your new company in a seamless manner. Topics to be discussed include:

• Using Linkedin as a resource for landing your dream job instead of finding yourself lost in the “black hole” of an online application
• How to best utilize recruiters as a resource
• What to do (and more importantly what NOT to do in the interview)
• How to resign from your current job and still have a good reference for the future
• Why counter offers are a terrible idea

This workshop will be presented by Emily Gransky, an experienced recruiter at Lucas Group.

A personal brand helps you to differentiate yourself and stand out from the crowd via a unique value proposition. It’s important to leverage your personal brand across all relationships with a consistent message and image to help you achieve specific goals. Learn how to use your personal brand to your advantage whether you’re starting your very first job or already in a position with a few years of experience under your belt. This workshop covers the following topics:

• What’s a personal brand and why does it matter?
• How do I identify and establish my personal brand?
• What are some tips for communicating my brand to others?
• What role should social media play in my personal brand?

This workshop will be presented by Gale Bowman, owner of WhatCollegeForgot.com