Conference Overview
The theme for this year’s Stanford Women’s Leadership Conference will be Creating a Valuable World. The event seeks to inspire leaders to improve their local and global communities. We will explore how women leaders define their values, incorporate these values into their work, and collaborate to create sustainable social and environmental impact.
We will explore the theme through three focus areas:
- Valuable Women | Striving For Authenticity
- What do I value?
- How do I evaluate my success?
- How do I become a good local and global citizen?
- Valuable Leaders | Creating Meaningful Careers
- Do I have to take a pay cut to do something I believe in?
- How can I incorporate my personal values into my work?
- What unique paths can I take to provoke social and environmental change?
- Valuable World | Building Collaborative Strength
- How can I work with other leaders locally and globally to realize my vision?
- How do I work with diverse groups of people to achieve a common goal?
- How can I maximize the impact and sustainability of my efforts?
We asked our speakers, “What do you wish someone had told you when you were choosing a career path?” This was their advice:
"I wish someone had told me how important the people who you work with are. In college people are very focused on what 'field' you are going into. However, you will never enjoy a job where you don't like the people. Having mentors and people to look up to in whatever career you choose is critical to feeling successful in your career." –Kirsten Tobey, Founder and COO Revolution Foods
“There’s no magic path to the perfect career. Choose to do what you love, take risks, and live deeply – all without planning too carefully.” –April Chou, Partner NewSchool Ventures
“One thing I wish someone had told me when I was in college/deciding on a career is how important it is to reach out and tell EVERYONE you know that you are looking for a job and two or three things that you think would be fun to do in that job so they can help you identify a new direction or position that might be available to you.” –Denise Brousseau, Founder Brousseau Group
“Pursue your passion and don’t stray from the path. No career choice is a mistake if it is your passion.”
–Neelam Noorani, Human Rights Lawyer
“I had lots of pressure from my family to major in electrical engineering. Tuition was very expensive for my family and my parents wanted to make sure that I could get a job with my degree. Yet, inside of me, part of me died with every EE class I took. Just to maintain my sanity I became very involved in the arts - and few knew what to make of me. I wish that I had guidance about how to handle both an urge to be technically rigorous while keeping the spirit of unbounded creativity alive somehow better than I did - with more clarity about the benefits of having a foot in each world.” –Mary Lou Jepsen, CEO Pixel Qi & Former CTO One Laptop per Child
"Your initial career path is not as important as your commitment to continuously challenge yourself to grow and develop as a human being." –Victoria Hale, Founder Institute for OneWorld Health"If you listen to academics all day, you'll end up too scared and shellshocked to get anything positive done in the world. Take what they have to as cautionary tales to inform and inspire you to act consciously, but avoid being bogged down and discouraged by their stories that seem to say how impossible it is to do good in the world." –Kjerstin Erickson, Founder FORGE
"Having had serial careers (retailing, marketing, public relations, advertising, corporate communications, teaching, writing, photography) I wish someone had told me, "You don't have to decide 'once and for all' what work you will do." –Paola Gianturco, Photojournalist & Author Women Who Light the Dark