Manhattan Area Young Professionals debuted their first annual Emerging Leaders Summit on October 17, 2023. This event was dedicated to empowering young professionals to reach their full potential by providing them with tools, skills, and connections to fuel their personal and professional growth. The half-day summit featured an array of exciting opportunities:
Interactive Breakout Sessions: Led by industry experts, the summit featured engaging breakout sessions covering a wide spectrum of topics, including financial planning, work-life balance, conflict management strategies, goal setting, childcare resources, and advice for serving on a board. Attendees had the chance to dive deep into two subjects that mattered most to them.
Networking Opportunities: Opportunities were provided during breakfast, lunch, and between breakout sessions for attendees to connect with other young professionals in the region. During that time, local organizations such as Big Brothers Big Sisters, WTC, and Made for Manhattan had booths to provide information about their organization and how to get involved in the community.
Inspiring Keynote Speaker: The summit commenced with an inspiring keynote address from renowned speaker and Kansas City Chiefs mascot, Dan Meers. During his presentation, Dan emphasized that your life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you wish but you will only get to spend it one time, so spend it wisely. He shared valuable lessons he has learned as a professional mascot and the obstacles he overcame after coming within inches of losing his life while practicing a zipline stunt at Arrowhead Stadium. As his speech commenced, Dan stressed that whether we are at home, at work, or in our community, we should strive for the best in life and enjoy it along the way.
The Emerging Leaders Summit was successful with over 110 participants registered for the day. This event would not have been possible without the help of our sponsors, Meadowlark and CivicPlus, and the numerous volunteers who dedicated their time to developing and running the summit. The Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce appreciates all businesses that allowed their young professionals to take part in this event and looks forward to seeing them back at next year’s summit.
