Leadership 2013

 

Wow - I just got back from my first Stampin' Up! Leadership experience. I am energized and exhausted.   Stampin' Up! has some amazing projects in the works for this year - which is their 25th year.  Before heading to Leadership, I was already enjoying being a demonstrator... but after Leadership I can say I really really LOVE being a part of Stampin' Up!

 

Usually when you go to a business conference you get put to sleep during most presentations. That does not happen at Stampin' Up! presentations. I found myself cheering, laughing, crying, and even dancing.  Where else does that happen?  I felt a huge connection to most of the presenters - they had been listening to demonstrator concerns and hopes and they answered. Even though I have only been a demonstrator for a year, I felt like a vital part of the organization and that I counted.

 

The first night, the Managers were treated to a night out at the new Harry Potter theme park at Universal Studios. They were taken out there by bus and had the place to themselves for dinner, rides, and shopping. I have not reached Manager level yet, so was only able to hear all about their adventures and see the video clips. Since my goal is to get to ride that Manager' Reception bus in the future, I attended a seminar "How to Get to Managers' Reception Next Year" presented by Brian Pilling.  Loved this! Goal setting can be a little intimidating and hard to make yourself do. Especially if your goals might seem out of reach, it is easy to just pedal away without thinking.  Brian encouraged (made) us think about not only the goals we were setting, but the why behind it.  Then to make it more concrete, we identified the requirements to meet that goal. In this case, such as a title promotion, what it would take to reach that title. Then we reviewed where we stood in our current position and where the growth was needed.  This all seems pretty simple, but then we broke it down further into smaller manageable steps. So whether you are setting small goals for yourself, maybe reading more every day; or making bigger goals like career changing. Breaking it down into smaller bits and pieces, makes it more likely you won't be overwhelmed by the goal and therefore may actually reach it.  After changing the way I looked at it, reaching Manager became more of a possibility. I am hoping that all of my classmates saw this new possibility too since we all promised to bring Brian along if we reach that bus ride! 

 

So combined with filling the bags with all those supplies for teachers, Brian's seminar was an wonderfully uplifting way to start Leadership. I have a lot more information coming - lots of new stamps sets on the way, a new monthly subscription called Paper Pumpkins.... this year is going to be amazing!!!  So keep checking in and keep stamping!