Last month Her Campus held their 7th annual Her Conference in New York City. Bringing together college women and professionals from across the country for a weekend of empowerment, inspiration, networking and in true Her Campus fashion, amazing sponsors and freebies. Two days of inspirational keynotes and informational panels always motivates me to follow my dreams and kickstart my career. Here are some of my favorite moments and highlights from the best weekend of the year:
The weekend kicked off with The Lady Gang dropping some empowering realizations: “Just because you’ve been dreaming of something your whole life doesn’t mean that’s the end of the road.” This truly stuck with me as I am someone who has had my whole life planned out since I was 10 and am just now starting to realize my path is changing.
During the How To: Kickstart Your Career In Marketing panel, Samantha Fulgham, Director of Field Marketing for Bumble touched on taking risks saying, “I’d rather you throw 1,000 darts into the wall instead of waiting and planning to hit the bulls eye.”
And on being the ultimate girlboss, “Hustle until your haters ask if you’re hiring.”
Fran Hauser, Media Executive, Startup Investor and Author, The Myth of the Nice Girl, talked about the importance of being nice, taking risks and believing in your true self saying, “If you don’t ask, the answer is always no.”
She also talked about how women tend to apologize for everything no matter how small, and this can be taken as a position of weakness. Fran suggests to “replace sorry with thank you,” and you can instantly see the dynamic change. Instead of responding, “Sorry, I can’t make it,” change it to, “Thank you for the invitation.”
Samantha Barry, Glamour Editor-in-Chief, urged us to “learn the skills of the older generations.” Pick up the phone or meet for coffee instead of hiding behind your screen.
Dr. Jen Welter, Author and First Female NFL Coach, was my personal favorite keynote, which caught myself by surprise as I have very little football knowledge or interest. She taught us that, “to change things, you need to take on roles you’re not ready for” and to, “follow your passion, not your paycheck.”
From The Bold Type’s, Aisha Dee, Younger’s, Nico Tortorella and Dear White People’s Logan Browning, Her Conference tackled important issues in today’s society. Unlike previous years where media and journalism were the primary focus, they took a step back to provide a well rounded experience. Her Campus also introduced new panels focusing on the business side of media, including How To Win In Sales & Business Development.
Reuniting with my amazing friends from Her Campus UCLA, University of Florida and Loyola-Marymount!
Shout out to Bliss for this super cute activation!
And the Almay Cosmic Cafe!
See you next year, Her Conference!