Workshops

Leadership Workshops:

Fostering a Culture of Feedback – February 14th, 2025

In this workshop we explored the power of feedback through an interactive exercise where we hid a toy in the room and practiced giving positive, negative, and no feedback to locate it. We learned the difference between constructive and destructive criticism and discussed how to deliver feedback with empathy to promote growth and maintain trust.

Practicing Servant Leadership – March 26th, 2025

This session introduced the concept of servant leadership, emphasizing putting the team’s needs first and building trust. I realized this style aligns with my natural approach, and I reflected on how prioritizing others fosters stability and stronger collaboration in teams.

Leading With Empathy and Compassion – March 12th, 2025

In this workshop we examined the differences between sympathy, empathy, and compassion, then practiced active listening in a three-person exercise with roles of talker, listener, and observer. This activity highlighted the importance of patience, presence, and deep understanding in building strong, compassionate relationships.

Telling My Leadership Story – March 5th, 2025

This workshop focused on personal reflection and guiding us to identify our “lollipop moments” (times when our actions made a positive impact on others). It helped me connect past experiences to my leadership journey and articulate my story with authenticity and confidence.

Reflection:

Going through these four workshops has fundamentally changed the way I think about leadership. I entered the program seeing leadership as simply directing a group toward a shared goal. I’m leaving with a much deeper understanding that leadership is about connection, trust, and creating the conditions for others to thrive.

One of the most impactful lessons I learned was the importance of listening with intention. In the empathy and compassion workshop, the talker-listener-observer exercise taught me how powerful it can be to slow down, be present, and give someone your full attention. I can already see how this will help me build stronger relationships in both my personal life and future workplace.

These workshops also reminded me that leadership starts with self-awareness. Reflecting on my “lollipop moments” helped me see how even small, seemingly insignificant actions can inspire and encourage others. It made me want to be more intentional about how I show up for the people around me.

Perhaps most importantly, I discovered that servant leadership fits who I am. I want to be the kind of leader who prioritizes the team’s needs, encourages feedback, and fosters trust. These lessons will guide how I build and lead teams in the future.