Owning Your Awesomeness: Professional Growth Strategies from UPCEA 2025

 

Owning Your Awesomeness: Professional Growth Strategies from UPCEA 2025

Originally published by UPCEA on November 3, 2025

Co-authored with Kim Siegenthaler, Susan Elkins, and Tatum Thomas.

Opportunity is shaped not only by the systems surrounding us, but also by whether we recognize our own capacity to lead, contribute, and grow within them.

This jointly authored piece draws from our “Owning Your Awesomeness” session at the 2025 UPCEA Annual Conference. The conversation explored professional growth as something deeper than acquiring new competencies. It begins with identifying the strengths, experiences, and values we already possess—and learning to articulate them with confidence and authenticity.

That work includes reframing the internal narratives that fuel self-doubt, developing a professional identity anchored in purpose, and becoming more intentional about visibility. Sharing an idea, accepting a speaking opportunity, publishing a reflection, or naming one’s aspirations is not an exercise in vanity. Done authentically, visibility allows expertise to travel, invites connection, and creates opportunities to contribute.

Growth is also relational. Mentors offer wisdom and candid feedback; sponsors open doors; peers provide community, perspective, and encouragement. Together, these relationships create a professional ecosystem in which people are better able to take risks, learn from imperfect experiences, and step into greater responsibility.

Owning one’s strengths does not mean claiming to have everything figured out. It means replacing self-criticism with honest self-recognition—and pairing that recognition with reflection, continuous learning, and purposeful action.

Read the full article on UPCEA →

Topics: Professional Growth · Leadership Development · Mentorship and Sponsorship · Professional Identity

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