This past weekend, the Circle of Change Leadership Experience leadership team and I had the opportunity to partner with San Jose State University and host our first Regional Leadership Conference in San Jose, California.  The theme of this transformational leadership conference was Discover, Develop, and Deploy.  Our goal for this one-day leadership conference was to help emerging leaders discover the leader from within, develop leadership skills through various sessions, and become inspired to act on the lessons learned during the conference.

Our leadership team, keynote speakers, and trained facilitators did an incredible job at making the regional conference a reality. The highlight of the weekend was our esteemed panel of professionals from EA Sports, Stanford Athletics, Yelp, Enablement Pros, and Google dropping incredible knowledge about the keys to attaining career and leadership success.

The goal of this month’s newsletter is to share with you six career leadership questions that we were able to develop from the insight, knowledge, and wisdom that this incredible panel shared with our diverse group of student leaders who attended the one-day leadership conference this past weekend. The 8th Annual Circle of Change Leadership Conference is one we strongly encourage you and your student leaders attend in November!

Lesson #1

Do You Have A Professional Brand?

The first career leadership lesson that our great panel shared with the emerging leaders at San Jose State University was that they must create a professional brand if they desire to attain career leadership success.

In effect, a resume is important, but the key to attaining career leadership success is having a professional brand that is consistent and aligns with your resume and social media platforms.

Lesson #2

Does Your Professional Brand Match the Company Culture?

The second career leadership lesson that our great panel shared with the emerging leaders at San Jose State University was that students who are searching for employment after graduation must learn about the company culture they plan to work for after graduation and, must be sure their professional brand matches the company culture.

In effect, when an emerging leader plans to apply for a job with a specific company or organization, they must be sure they understand the culture of the company or organization, and their professional brand aligns well with the desired place of employment.

Lesson #3

What Gift/Assets Are You Bringing to the Company?

The third career leadership lesson that our great panel shared with the emerging leaders at San Jose State University was that students who are searching for employment after graduation must consider what value, added benefit, knowledge, skill set, or insight they bring to the company or organization before they actually participate in the first interview.

In effect, when an emerging leader is preparing for the first interview, they should research the company extensively, learn about the unique dynamics of the company, and be prepared to share something (knowledge, value, insight, added benefit) with the company or organization that they can provide that will make it that much better.

Lesson #4

Do You Have A Strong Network?

The fourth career leadership lesson that our great panel shared with the emerging leaders at San Jose State University was that students who are searching for employment after graduation must begin the process of creating a strong professional network of people who are doing what they desire to do after graduation.

In effect, in addition to getting good grades in school and being actively involved on campus, emerging leaders should intern with various companies and organizations, reach out to people in their desired areas of expertise for informational interviews, join professional organizations, and connect with at least fifty people from the area of expertise they plan to pursue after graduation.

Lesson #5

Do You View Your Diverse Attributes As An Asset?

The fifth career leadership lesson that our great panel shared with the emerging leaders at San Jose State University was that students who are the diverse person in the organization or company should begin seeing themselves as an asset to the company.

In essence, instead of seeing your diverse attributes as a road-block in the organization, see them as an asset because you are able to provide that company or organization with a beneficial perspective that only you can provide based on your diverse attributes within the company or organization.

Lesson #6

Do You Have A Positive Attitude and Reputation?

The sixth career leadership lesson that our great panel shared with the emerging leaders at San Jose State University was that students who desire to attain career leadership success after graduation must have a positive attitude and strong reputation that is built on strong character and working excellence.

In effect, as an emerging leader who is pursuing career leadership success, you want to have a positive attitude and proven track record of being a man or woman of character who does excellent work.

Honestly, although there was so much more insight, knowledge, and wisdom that was shared by this incredible panel, these were six things I definitely thought would benefit emerging and seasoned leaders that are striving to attain career leadership success.