Reasons you HAVE to attend Her Conference 2017!

So, I have had a lot of people ask me about my blogging hiatus, and truth is– I was busy with school, and life just took over! But have no fear, Defining Danie is back and ready to tell you why this summer, you MUST attend Her Conference 2017.

HER CAMPUS 3

Me and my friend, Sarah at last year’s conference! We love a good step-and-repeat!

If you are a PR, marketing, journalism, English, writing or communications major, or anything related to these majors, this two-day conference could be life-changing for you. This summer will be my third time attending the conference, and let me tell you, I leave more inspired to become a better overall person each year!

So, what is Her Conference?
Her Conference is a two-day event coordinated by Her Campus, my favorite online magazine, that is filled with amazing speakers, great career advice and inspiration! Her Campus is all about women’s empowerment and educating college women, which is so apparent throughout this weekend full of famous speakers and leading women in the industries that we cannot wait to enter into.

There are breakout sessions after each keynote speaker and it’s spectacular because, after each breakout session, the women speaking on those specific topics stay a little longer so you can network with them and they can answer any specific questions you may have! (Make sure you bring your networking/business cards, ladies!)

Who are some of the past speakers I keep talking about?
Let’s see… Rebecca Minkoff (and I got to meet her!), Nastia Luikin, Joyce Chang (former EIC of Self magazine), Samantha Power (U.S. United Nations Ambassador), Vanessa De Luca (EIC of Essence Magazine) are just some of the cool keynote speakers. There are also hundreds of women from cool PR/marketing companies and leading magazines there for the breakout sessions. Last year, I got to meet and keep in touch with the former marketing director of Glamour magazine. She offered me a ton of career advice that I used to help me get my internship for this summer!

Hearing these women speak gives you a boost of confidence because you know they had to begin where we are starting now!

What are some of the panels that you could attend?
Some of my favorite panel sessions that I attended last year were:
Blogging 101: How To Grow Your Following and Engagement
How To Kickstart Your Career In Marketing
What Working In PR Really Means- And How To Do It!

There are so many awesome panels both days and sometimes it’s hard to choose which one to go to during each session because they have multiple you can choose from at a time.

HER CAMPUS 2

Me, Sammy, Sarah and Tori- who is a PR manager for Soul Cycle! She was a speaker on one of the panels!

Who are some of the speakers this year?
Her Campus just annouced two of the keynote speakers- they are: Amani Al-Khatahbeth, Founder and EIC of Muslimgirl.com and Gretchen Carlson, Acclaimed TV journalist and Women’s Empowerment Advocate– sounds amazing, right!?

Where is the two-day conference?
In the heart of NYC! It’s so fun because after the day is done, a lot of the women attending will grab dinner or drinks together.

If this conference didn’t already sound amazing, every year when you arrive, each person gets stuffed swag bag full of goodies and a notebook so you can take notes in each session! The notebook also includes a bio about each speaker, it’s so convenient!

If you want to see the schedule for this year’s conference, you can do so: here and for more information and tickets, make sure you visit their website! You can also find out more information by following Her Campus at @Hercampus on all social media.

970x250.gif

I really hope I see you all there, I am so excited!

img_2782

 

 

 

 

NYC Will Always Have My Heart

I cannot believe it, but my NYC summer experience has come to an end. Unbelievable, right?

IMG_3096.JPG

New York City became my home this summer and I feel like I legitimately left a piece of my heart there. When I first arrived in the city, I kept saying “I think I am going to have a great summer but I definitely do not see myself here after graduation.” WELL, I WAS WRONG. This summer my heart grew fonder as the days went on.

From learning the subway to mastering the different areas of Manhattan, to becoming closer with girls in the classes and internship to discovering so many amazing restaurants, my summer in NYC is one I will never forget.

I lived in the Upper West Side, which I always compared to the suburbs of the city. My internship was in the Flatiron District and my classes were in Midtown. I loved my classes and I definitely learned a lot of about myself and what I want out of my future at my internship.

I interned at a fashion PR firm, which was definitely an experience I always dreamed about. For the past three years I have said my dream was to work in fashion PR, but after interning in a fashion PR firm, I learned that I LIKE fashion PR, but I don’t LOVE it. I am so grateful for the experience I had at the agency I interned for. I was able to work at both New York Men’s Day (the opening event for NYFW) and at New York Men’s Fashion Week.

IMG_3155

This summer was amazing, and I think one of my absolute favorite things was getting to try all the different trendy foods that were all over Facebook and the internet this summer. For example, Frosé, the roll-up ice cream and I went to the bakery , Union Fare, which sells the rainbow croissants, but they were sold out by the time I got there so I tried their cookies and cream croissant, which was just as fabulous!

Image-1

Exploring was also amazing. You would think in the eight weeks I was there, I would have been able to do everything I wanted to, but I didn’t. If I did not have class or my internship, I probably could have, but I know that I will definitely have to do the things I wanted to do this summer first as soon as I am back in the city!

IMG_3172

Another thing I loved about being in NYC, everyone wants to come and visit! My sister, Payton and best friend, Amanda came twice, my friend Mary came with Payton and Amanda on their second trip and my friend Erin came up for a weekend trip. The FUNNIEST thing was Erin and I sleeping in my twin sized bed in my dorm room, haha!

IMG_8335

During my friend’s visits we explored all around Manhattan and went to Brooklyn! In Brooklyn, we adventured in Williamsburg and DUMBO, which is in the picture below.

IMG_8473.JPG

DUMBO: Down Under the Manhattan Brooklyn Overpass 

Dumbo was gorgeous! The architecture, the view of the Manhattan Skyline and the view of the Brooklyn bridge are out of this world. The area is located right in the middle of the Manhattan bridge and the Brooklyn bridge.

This summer also included going to Her Conference. Her Conference is a conference hosted by Her Campus, an online magazine for women in college. I am a writer for Her Campus Kent State and I am also in their blogging network! They hosted a kick-off event, hosted by Rebecca Minkoff. I attended the event and had the chance to meet her. I fan-girled so hard! She was so sweet and even signed the inside of the bag I purchased that evening.

IMG_3357.JPG

I cannot believe all of the things I did within these past eight weeks. These were just a few highlights from my summer. I truly cannot believe this summer is almost over. Summer 2016 is definitely my favorite summer yet!

img_2782