Professional Development School - "Power-Up Your Career" Sessions

Unlocking your true potential begins with understanding yourself and taking intentional action. In this high-energy, story-driven keynote, Chris shares three essential keys to personal and professional success: self-awareness, a growth mindset, and resilience. Packed with actionable takeaways and inspiring real-life experiences from his days as a Power Ranger stunt performer to business leader, this session will motivate attendees to push past perceived limits, embrace growth, and perform at their best. Walk away empowered, energized, and equipped to maximize your potential. Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will identify their core values, strengths, and behavioral patterns to better understand how self-awareness is the foundation of maximizing potential. 2. Participants will apply a growth mindset framework to reframe challenges and obstacles as opportunities, moving them further along their journey to empowerment. 3. Participants will evaluate their current response to adversity and develop resilience strategies to recover, adapt, and perform at their highest potential.

In parks and recreation, every day brings new opportunities, unexpected challenges, and chances to grow. Inspired by this year's Mario-themed 'Power Up Your Career' conference, this interactive session explores how CliftonStrengths can help you discover your unique abilities, level up your leadership, and navigate change with greater confidence and impact. Using the CliftonStrengths assessment as our guide, participants will explore their unique player profile—their natural patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving that influence leadership, teamwork, communication, and career success. Just as each Mario character brings different abilities to overcome obstacles and support their team, each of us possesses a unique combination of talents that can be developed into powerful strengths. Through engaging activities, reflection, and discussion, participants will uncover hidden strengths, strengthen their ability to collaborate through effective team play, and learn how to intentionally 'power up' the talents that help them perform at their best. Participants will leave with greater self-awareness, a deeper understanding of their Top 10 Talent Themes, and practical strategies for applying their strengths to create greater impact in their careers and communities. Because leadership is not about becoming someone else—it's about understanding your unique abilities, intentionally developing them, and using them to level up the impact you make every day. Learning Objectives: 1. Describe their Top 10 Talent Themes, what they need to thrive, and how they contribute to career success. 2. Identify how their talents help them build strong teams, influence outcomes, accomplish goals, and think strategically while navigating workplace challenges and opportunities. 3. Develop strategies to evolve their talents into strengths—so they can experience greater impact, engagement, and fulfillment in their careers and lives.

The second-year Professional Development School experience invites participants to level up their leadership journey by building on the foundation established in Year One. Through self-discovery, reflection, and practical application, attendees will unlock new leadership abilities that strengthen their confidence, communication, and vision for the future. Like any great adventure, every challenge becomes an opportunity to gain experience, collect new tools, and prepare for the next stage of professional growth. Participants will explore their unique personality styles and discover how those strengths influence the way they lead, communicate, and inspire others. Together, they will examine common communication pitfalls, develop strategies for building stronger teams, and define what success looks like both personally and professionally. Throughout the experience, participants will create meaningful goals and a personalized roadmap that helps them continue powering up their careers long after Professional Development School concludes. Be prepared for interactive discussions, collaborative activities, and practical exercises that will provide valuable takeaways you can immediately apply within your organization and throughout your leadership journey. Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will identify their personality styles and learn how to use those styles to be better leaders. 2. Participants will identify communication pitfall and techniques to help themselves and their teams. Participants will define success for themselves. 3. Participants will create personal and professional goals that will help them map where they are going.

Great leadership starts long before you ever influence a team. It starts with knowing who you are and how you show up for the people around you. Too often, leaders jump straight to strategy and tactics without pausing to define their own leadership identity, and it shows up in how they engage their teams and respond when they're challenged. In this engaging graduate-level session, we'll get tactical. You'll define your personal leadership mission and core values, explore practical strategies for building real engagement and buy-in with your staff, and learn the STEP Method for receiving feedback like a leader, staying open and growth-focused instead of defensive. You'll leave with a clear picture of who you are as a leader, and the tools to put it into practice with your team immediately. Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will define their personal leadership mission and core values as the foundation for how they lead. 2. Participants will apply strategies to increase staff engagement and build genuine buy-in within their teams. 3. Participants will practice the STEP Method to receive feedback with openness and turn it into personal growth.

In parks and recreation, every day brings new opportunities, unexpected challenges, and chances to grow. Inspired by this year's Mario-themed 'Power Up Your Career' conference, this interactive session explores how CliftonStrengths can help you discover your unique abilities, level up your leadership, and navigate change with greater confidence and impact. Using the CliftonStrengths assessment as our guide, participants will explore their unique player profile—their natural patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving that influence leadership, teamwork, communication, and career success. Just as each Mario character brings different abilities to overcome obstacles and support their team, each of us possesses a unique combination of talents that can be developed into powerful strengths. Through engaging activities, reflection, and discussion, participants will uncover hidden strengths, strengthen their ability to collaborate through effective team play, and learn how to intentionally 'power up' the talents that help them perform at their best. Participants will leave with greater self-awareness, a deeper understanding of their Top 10 Talent Themes, and practical strategies for applying their strengths to create greater impact in their careers and communities. Because leadership is not about becoming someone else—it's about understanding your unique abilities, intentionally developing them, and using them to level up the impact you make every day. Learning Objectives: 1. Describe their Top 10 Talent Themes, what they need to thrive, and how they contribute to career success. 2. Identify how their talents help them build strong teams, influence outcomes, accomplish goals, and think strategically while navigating workplace challenges and opportunities. 3. Develop strategies to evolve their talents into strengths—so they can experience greater impact, engagement, and fulfillment in their careers and lives.

The second-year Professional Development School experience invites participants to level up their leadership journey by building on the foundation established in Year One. Through self-discovery, reflection, and practical application, attendees will unlock new leadership abilities that strengthen their confidence, communication, and vision for the future. Like any great adventure, every challenge becomes an opportunity to gain experience, collect new tools, and prepare for the next stage of professional growth. Participants will explore their unique personality styles and discover how those strengths influence the way they lead, communicate, and inspire others. Together, they will examine common communication pitfalls, develop strategies for building stronger teams, and define what success looks like both personally and professionally. Throughout the experience, participants will create meaningful goals and a personalized roadmap that helps them continue powering up their careers long after Professional Development School concludes. Be prepared for interactive discussions, collaborative activities, and practical exercises that will provide valuable takeaways you can immediately apply within your organization and throughout your leadership journey. Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will identify their personality styles and learn how to use those styles to be better leaders. 2. Participants will identify communication pitfall and techniques to help themselves and their teams. Participants will define success for themselves. 3. Participants will create personal and professional goals that will help them map where they are going.

Every leader eventually faces the same challenge: someone on their team isn't meeting expectations, and the conversation keeps getting put off. In this tactical, graduate-level workshop, we'll break down exactly why that happens and what to do about it. Using the Feedback Spectrum, participants will diagnose where they and their teams get stuck, from silence and avoidance to real clarity and growth. From there, we'll dig into the SHIFT Method, a practical framework for coaching and delivering feedback that lands. Finally, we'll tackle accountability, turning feedback into consistent follow-through so it leads to real results instead of a conversation that happened once, and nothing changed. Participants will leave with a specific plan for a real conversation they've been avoiding. Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will identify the key reasons people fall short or get stuck in their performance, using the Feedback Spectrum to diagnose the pattern. 2. Participants will apply the SHIFT Method to coach their staff and deliver feedback that is clear, direct, and growth-oriented. 3. Participants will develop a personal accountability plan to turn feedback into consistent follow-through and real results.

In this highly interactive workshop, participants will dive into the core of who they are as professionals. Through a combination of storytelling, comedy, and interactive activities, we focus heavily on self-discovery and relationship building. These engagements begin by slowly immersing participants in creative, focus-based exercises aimed at moving everyone out of their comfort zone to identify their natural talents and communication drivers. By embracing imperfection, you will learn how to build these initial talents into true professional strengths. With a focus on humor and mastering the art of active listening, this session provides new perceptions on leadership, ensuring you walk away with the tools to foster critical thinking and connect authentically as you grow your career. Learning Objectives: 1. Identify your personal communication habits and talents through interactive, low-pressure self-discovery exercises. 2. Master foundational active listening to build stronger relationships and influence others effectively early in your career. 3. Experience new concepts of leadership by embracing imperfect action, allowing you to turn raw talents into professional strengths.

The second-year Professional Development School experience invites participants to level up their leadership journey by building on the foundation established in Year One. Through self-discovery, reflection, and practical application, attendees will unlock new leadership abilities that strengthen their confidence, communication, and vision for the future. Like any great adventure, every challenge becomes an opportunity to gain experience, collect new tools, and prepare for the next stage of professional growth. Participants will explore their unique personality styles and discover how those strengths influence the way they lead, communicate, and inspire others. Together, they will examine common communication pitfalls, develop strategies for building stronger teams, and define what success looks like both personally and professionally. Throughout the experience, participants will create meaningful goals and a personalized roadmap that helps them continue powering up their careers long after Professional Development School concludes. Be prepared for interactive discussions, collaborative activities, and practical exercises that will provide valuable takeaways you can immediately apply within your organization and throughout your leadership journey. Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will identify their personality styles and learn how to use those styles to be better leaders. 2. Participants will identify communication pitfall and techniques to help themselves and their teams. Participants will define success for themselves. 3. Participants will create personal and professional goals that will help them map where they are going.

Communication is more than exchanging information. It's how you build credibility, establish trust, influence decisions, and inspire others to act. Whether you're leading a meeting, presenting an idea, navigating a difficult conversation, or speaking to a large audience, the way you communicate shapes how others experience your leadership. Yet many professionals struggle to communicate with confidence, adapt their message to different audiences, or ensure their words have the impact they intended. Together, we'll explore what it takes to become a confident and influential communicator. We'll examine the habits, mindsets, and behaviors that strengthen your presence, build credibility, and help your message resonate long after the conversation ends. Through discussion, interactive activities, and real-world practice, you'll challenge common assumptions about communication, strengthen your executive presence, and discover practical strategies to communicate with greater confidence, authenticity, and influence in every setting. Learning Objectives: 1. Evaluate communication styles and identify strategies to strengthen executive presence and professional influence. 2. Apply effective communication techniques, including active listening, storytelling, nonverbal communication, and audience awareness, to improve engagement and message delivery. 3. Demonstrate confidence when communicating in presentations, meetings, impromptu speaking opportunities, and challenging workplace conversations.

Leadership begins long before you influence a team, make an important decision, or inspire others to follow. It begins with the person in the mirror. The most effective leaders understand that their attitudes, behaviors, communication, and decisions influence every interaction they have with employees, colleagues, and the communities they serve. Before leaders can effectively lead others, they must first learn to lead themselves. Together, we'll explore the essential connection between self-leadership and leadership effectiveness. We'll examine the habits, mindsets, and behaviors that distinguish effective leaders from effective managers, and how leading yourself well influences every decision, conversation, and relationship. We'll challenge common assumptions about leadership, reflect on the leadership practices that shape your influence, and identify practical ways to lead with greater intention every day. When you strengthen the leader within, you'll be better equipped to build trust, inspire confidence, navigate challenges, and bring out the best in others while positioning yourself for continued leadership growth. Learning Objectives: 1. Evaluate their leadership mindset, behaviors, and emotional intelligence to identify strengths and opportunities for growth. 2. Differentiate between managing and leading, and determine leadership strategies that strengthen trust, engagement, and team performance. 3. Create a personalized leadership development plan with actionable strategies to intentionally grow as a leader and increase your influence.

The second-year Professional Development School experience invites participants to level up their leadership journey by building on the foundation established in Year One. Through self-discovery, reflection, and practical application, attendees will unlock new leadership abilities that strengthen their confidence, communication, and vision for the future. Like any great adventure, every challenge becomes an opportunity to gain experience, collect new tools, and prepare for the next stage of professional growth. Participants will explore their unique personality styles and discover how those strengths influence the way they lead, communicate, and inspire others. Together, they will examine common communication pitfalls, develop strategies for building stronger teams, and define what success looks like both personally and professionally. Throughout the experience, participants will create meaningful goals and a personalized roadmap that helps them continue powering up their careers long after Professional Development School concludes. Be prepared for interactive discussions, collaborative activities, and practical exercises that will provide valuable takeaways you can immediately apply within your organization and throughout your leadership journey. Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will identify their personality styles and learn how to use those styles to be better leaders. 2. Participants will identify communication pitfall and techniques to help themselves and their teams. Participants will define success for themselves. 3. Participants will create personal and professional goals that will help them map where they are going.

In this high-energy, advanced workshop, participants will explore the intersection of leadership, creativity, and agency-wide innovation. Through storytelling, comedy, and collaborative activities, we move beyond foundational skills to focus strictly on direct application. Participants will network and problem-solve with fellow leaders, tackling 'group writer's block' by removing the fear of judgment so they stop self-editing and start generating breakthrough ideas. By cultivating a culture of experimentation and risk-taking, you will gain actionable strategies to take back to your park district. This session is designed to give you the confidence to lead with levity, challenging traditional notions of leadership so you can inspire your staff with passion, creativity, and success. Learning Objectives: 1. Overcome 'Group Writer's Block': Eliminate the fear of judgment that stalls innovation, empowering your staff to stop self-editing and start generating breakthrough ideas. 2. Cultivate a culture of passion and success at your agency by applying collaborative strategies to build on each other's ideas and navigate challenges with agility. 3. Strengthen professional leadership networks by collaborating with peers on advanced active listening and adaptive communication exercises.