I'm not an entry-level employee - here's what I'm planning to gain from the YWLC
You might think that JWI’s Young Women’s Leadership Conference is geared toward entry-level professional women who are facing the working world for the first time: wide-eyed and bushy-tailed, eager to learn the art of asserting themselves in the office. If you already have a few years of professional experience on your resume, I’m here to tell you that there’s a place for you here, too.
By Stephanie Arbetter
I recently found myself in a position at work where, at a moment’s notice, I was presented with an amazing opportunity that I (of course) wanted to accept on the spot. Before signing off on this dream offer, I took a deep breath and laid out the terms I’d like to negotiate before moving forward. What I wanted was not just monetarily related, so I knew I would have to advocate for myself because no one else was going to. It was not an awkward conversation as so many of these often are, and after a few more meetings, everyone came away completely satisfied.
The reason I’m telling you this story is because - in an instance such as this - I did not have the prep time to read a million blogs on the art of negotiation, call my parents for a last-minute talk, write motivational post-it notes for my mirror, or do a power pose for five minutes. All I had were the tools in my toolkit: panels I had attended, career podcasts I had tuned into and wildly successful speakers I had so diligently studied.
You might think that JWI’s Young Women’s Leadership Conference is geared toward entry-level professional women who are facing the working world for the first time: wide-eyed and bushy-tailed, eager to learn the art of asserting themselves in the office. If you already have a few years of professional experience on your resume, I’m here to tell you that there’s a place for you here, too.
I would argue that this conference is actually more valuable for someone like you (and me). With panel topics focused on taking charge both personally and professionally, asserting yourself in a male-dominated corporate society, mentorship, growing your career, and more, you will extract real and actionable takeaways that you can begin applying at work as soon as the following Monday. You have the background knowledge to take unique advantage of this time with professional leaders - to ask the high-level questions you’ve been wondering about.
As we all grow in our careers, we are starting to be seen by leadership as confident, capable women who can accept managerial-level tasks and the responsibilities that come with them. We don’t need our bosses speaking on our behalf or our hiring managers asking the company to give us a raise. That’s OUR job, and we need to be prepared for it.
Give yourself the gift of knowledge and attend this year’s conference. The return on investment is priceless!
Originally hailing from Dallas, Texas, Stephanie Arbetter is a Social Media Manager at Hilton Worldwide. Stephanie recently joined Hilton after three years in the district working in travel and tourism marketing. She holds an ABJ in Journalism from the University of Georgia and is currently pursuing her Master's degree from Georgetown University in Integrated Marketing Communications. Stephanie loves travel (surprise!), trying different workout classes around the city, a good craft cocktail and Shabbat dinners with close friends.
