On Thursday the 18th of October, Cpl CFO, Lorna Conn spoke at the UCD Investors and Entrepreneurs, Women in Business Event. The event centered around a panel discussion on 'Confidence is Key' in the UCD Quinn School of Business.
The event was hosted by the UCD Investors and Entrepreneurs Women in Business group -a newly formed division within the UCD Investors and Entrepreneurs society.
Joining Lorna Conn on the panel was Breda McCague, Founder of Lean In Ireland; Martin Tormey, Director of Strategic Business Development at Goodbody and Julie O'Neill, ex-Secretary General of the Department of Transport.
Together they discussed the importance of confidence, interview skills, career planning and progression, the value of a professional mentor and self-belief, as well as their own personal career experiences.
Key takeaways from the event:
- Grab opportunities - If someone reaches out to you about a role, take it that you are qualified for it. A job description is a wish-list, you don't need to tick every box to be a credible candidate.
- Embrace your softer side - Women are more generally more social and have better communication, decision making and teamwork skills, use these to your advantage in interviews and indeed in your career as a whole.
- Build relationships - Some of the biggest deals made and best advice given occurs after hours in social settings, so make sure you get the invite!
- Banish self-doubt - Oftentimes we have a little voice in our head that it telling us that we can't do something; instead of listening to it, take stock of all of the things you have accomplished and all of the challenges you have overcome and use this to fuel your next mission.