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Hey everyone! For those who are reading a blog of mine for the first time, my name is Freya Shah. I will be in Grade 10 come September at Woburn CI! On Tuesday, I got to attend an extremely valuable and interactive workshop with Dannielle Sakher, and I am so excited to share my experience with everyone today! (P.S. Read till the end to find out why Vaseline is everyone's FAVOURITE jelly!😉)
Our workshop with Danielle Sakher was a great opportunity, however this time it was heavier on the interaction side rather than and it was on the informative and note-taking side. The workshop itself really got me wondering about my post-secondary journey! Before I dive into my experience, who is Dannielle Sakher? Dannielle is a young entrepreneur, who is currently working at Zapier! She is really inspirational and a happy person, which makes her extremely approachable!
In our workshop with Danielle, my main takeaway was the 5 leadership lessons she gave us:
1. Most people know better than you - ask for help.
Everybody has had their own experiences, and therefore has had their own unique learnings. We all possess some type of skill, trait, or knowledge that others may not; and that is perfectly normal! In today's society, most people are ready to help you out, so ASK. Asking for help isn't a sign of incapability, it is a sign of strength. Along with personal growth, asking for help allows you to help the people around you grow as well. Asking for help not only gives you different perspectives, but it also shows the other person that you trust them, and that their opinions matter to you. That is the job of a leader; helping others grow along with you. Not only did Danielle provide us with this lesson, but she also described how she applied it in her life. On her first time applying for a valuable opportunity, Dannielle was rejected. Dannielle didn't let the rejection pull her down, instead, she asked people who were accepted for feedback on how to improve her application. The next time around, she was accepted, and with an entrance scholarship at that! Key Takeaway: Rejection is a setback, but it's up to you to turn the tables.
2. Make the most out of mentorships.
The way I see it, this lesson ties directly back with learning from others. Your mentors are there to help YOU succeed, so make sure you take as much out of it as you can! As a mentor, their job is to help you in any possible way that they can, so don't
be afraid to ask for help. Keep in mind that a mentor has the knowledge and skillset that will help you with your career or life, and so try to make the most of it. Within the idea of mentorship, make sure you focus on communication. Communication is arguably one of the mast useful skills to have as a leader, because it helps you understand and comply with others. As a mentee, try to communicate with your mentor in an efficient and effective way, to make sure that you can grasp the knowledge you need in order to succeed.
3. Be ready to enter an open door.
Opportunities disappear as fast as they appear. Grasping opportunities is one of the best ways to increase experience and knowledge in both a personal and professional way. an "open door" is a creative metaphor for opportunities, and this lesson really taught me to take the opportunity when I can. Each different "door" will pave the way to a new learning, just as the picture to the right represents! So, if you are reading this, go through that door before it closes shut🏃♂️🏃♀️!
4. You will not know what to do until you try.
Try, try, try! Have a little taste of everything to figure out what you like. Most of us (me too) think we know our likes and our dislikes. Although this may be true, you never know when you were missing out until after you try it. Push that fear to the backseat and let adventure take over🧗♀️! There are so many reasons to try new things, and here are a few of them:
Meet new people
Learn about yourself
Expose yourself to new ideas
Gives you more things to talk about
Breaks up the routine of life
Increases your overall satisfaction
Alleviates boredom
Grow as a person
Become a more interesting person
Discover things you like and don’t like
Expand your perspective on life - Esther Thomas
Boost your overall confidence level
Experience more of what life has to offer
5. Sales is a highly transferable skill
Transferrable skills are those skills that you can apply in mostly ALL aspects of your career and life. These skills include communication, problem solving, technological fluency, collaboration, sales, and much more! Onto sales: Sales does not only have to be selling products. On the contrary, sales can also be about selling yourself. As a transferrable skill, sales will help you in all areas of life, whether it be personal areas or professional areas. Sales help you grow as both an individual and a leader, and it helps you learn more about you!
Personal Application:
These 5 lessons are definitely going to help me in the future. Although my career path isn't set in stone (and that's fine!), leadership is a transferrable skill. I can use it at any point in my life! I already used one of the 5 lessons (sales) during the workshop in the pitch competition! (I'll be writing about that near the end of this post). I think the tip that resonated with me the most was "being ready to enter an open door." This skill can be used in the future, because as humans, we are constantly developing and growing, and trying new things is key to growth as the leader you are. I will be applying this concept by never letting go of an opportunity. Although that is a bit cliché, opportunities are coming and going, so it's up to me to use them to my benefit!
VASELINE IS EVERYONE'S FAVOURITE JELLY!
Apart from the Leadership Learning, Danielle hosted a pitch competition! As a task, we all had to choose one item that was around us to pitch(or SELL) to the rest of the attendees. I chose to pitch Vaseline Petroleum Jelly! This was a truly amazing experience, and I was IN AWE with everyone's speeches. For my pitch, I chose to incorporate humor, which worked out for me! Your reading the work of the pitch competition winner right now😎😎😎!
Although I didn't write my pitch down word-for-word, here's a little bit of it!
"Hey everyone! So, today I will be pitching everybody's favorite jelly - no not Jello - VASELINE PETROLEUM JELLY!
Have your lips been feeling dry lately? I know mine have!
Well, the weather has been on and off lately, I mean we got snow in June, and so I know a lot of people facing problems with dry skin.
Well, fear no more, you have Vaseline!
Vaseline is a very affordable option, and costs only $3.99!
It can be used by anyone and everyone!
In fact, I'm wearing some right now as I deliver this pitch!
Have your skin feeling as soft as a baby's bum with just one application!
Heal chapped lips, dry skin, or just moisturize yourself, make YOUR body happy...
Buy yourself some Vaseline Petroleum Jelly today!
Find it at your nearest drugstore, Walmart, or NoFrills for only $3.99!
Whatever the skin issue may be, solve it with VASELINE! *cue dramatic showcase of Vaseline container*
Oh, and for my ladies out there, its an AMAZING lip gloss as well!"
Words can't show tone, but I hope you got a little idea of what my pitch was like! I wasn't too confident at the beginning, but once I started talking, my enthusiasm was
📈through the roof 📈! I want to congratulate every single participant in the competition, because every pitch was extremely intriguing and absolutely amazing!
So, that's all from me today! Before I end things off, I'd like to thank Dannielle Sakher for her wonderful workshop. I learned so much and had lots of fun! Thank you for taking the time to read this post, and if you want to reach out, feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn or shoot me a message on Instagram! I hope you have a great day😁!
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