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WHAT I KNOW NOW™ Seminars What You Know Now…Pass It On Clients Lehman Brothers Healthcare Business Women's Association Random House inVentiv Health Midatlantic Healthcare Business Women's Association Financial Women's Association American Express Co. Praise for WHAT I KNOW NOW™ Seminars: "Ellyn Spragins helped to lead a Women's Leadership Program through her "What I Know Now" workshop, making the experience for 150 women both memorable and moving. She first conducted a deeply personal panel discussion with three of our senior women who told their stories and inspired the rest of the managing directors and senior vice presidents who had traveled to attend from around the world. Then she led the audience through an afternoon experience that bonded them uniquely and raised the level of trust and personal investment in one another. This was a rare offsite program where the attendees did not stampede out of the room on their Blackberries during breaks. Instead they were so engaged that they stayed at their tables talking to each other. The concept that emotional authenticity is a key, possibly essential, part of female leadership is at the heart of this event." --Hope Greenfield, Chief Learning Officer, Lehman Brothers.
"This past November in Boston, 400 senior and middle management leaders from healthcare attended the 2-day Healthcare Business Women's Annual Leadership Conference complete with 4 key note speakers and 15 workshops. The top rated session of the conference was Ellyn Spragins' presentation on the book WHAT I KNOW NOW Letters to My Younger Self, complete with a panel of 3 senior executives who read their letters to their younger selves. The presentation, the letters, and the rich Q&A session created a contemplative forum for all attendees to think about their own journey -- both past and future. Comments included "I loved the fact that they spoke on topics universal to us all," "This session was truly life altering," and "The honesty and openness of these most accomplished executives transformed a room of 400 people into an intimate conversation between two people, the person speaking and myself". Ellyn is a masterful presenter and moderator and effortlessly wove a beautiful tapestry of life experiences for all to access. " --Susan Torroella, CEO, Columbia MedCom Group
Global Board, Healthcare Business Women's Association
Responsible for the Annual Leadership Conference
"Ellyn Spragins has put together one of the most amazing and impactful books I have had the good fortune to read in a long time. I was amazed that women like Madeleine Albright, Cokie Roberts and Olympia Dukakis would share such intimate and painful details of their lives. Yet when asked to do the same in order to participate in a HBA Conference panel, I realized how important (and easy) it is to reflect on how you arrived at where you are. What was more meaningful was sharing it with others and finding out how many people my trials and tribulations offered hope to. In fact, all three of us on the panel were surprised at how much we learned from each other and by the standing ovation of over 400 women attending the session. WHAT I KNOW NOW Letters to My Younger Self should be mandatory reading for all women. I strongly recommend it be shared, discussed and--if you are brave enough--emulated by writing your own letter to your younger self." --Lesa Ladieri, Senior VP, Pfizer
"The WHAT I KNOW NOW panel event was a huge success for both our external partners and our employees, especially our women employees. Though our Women's Interest Network group sponsors several of these events every year, this particular program was truly one of the largest turnouts and most inspiring dialogues ever!" --Cheryl Green Rosario, Manager, Philanthropy, American Express
"Ellyn Spragins has an elegance and eloquence that enables her to capture the spirit and wisdom of accomplished women. The unique stories these women have to tell come from the heart -- and audience members recognize the authenticity and vulnerability that comes through. An immediate connection is created with the audience forming an intimate bond and sense of camaraderie. All of this makes for a poignant and memorable experience. Truly rewarding." --Christine Birnbaum, Director, NewYorkLifeIM Human Resources
"Sitting through our meeting listening to the panel's letters to their younger selves reminded me of crises in confidence that I have faced through the years and how much the advice that I could have given myself if I had more life experience would have been invaluable in choosing the right path or working my way out of tragedy. We don't have time machines…we cannot go back in our own lives, but we can learn from others, and by writing letters to our younger self and archiving them, we may be able to help another struggling man or woman make choices with the benefit of our hard-earned experience." --Katrin Y. Dambrot, Managing Director, The Governance Group
"Having been involved in the planning of other Women's events, I can say that the response by people at the firm to the Letters discussion and panel was the most overwhelmingly positive that I've seen. Moreover, this was the most personal event that I've been a part of. Our events often revolve around discreet topics important to female executives or focus on advice from very successful business leaders, but this was unique in that the event combined advice on a wide range of topics from very important leaders at our firm in a forum that was intimate and inspiring. Audience members, both male and female, shared with me during the cocktail reception following the event, that they could relate to many of the themes discussed throughout the event. It was a unique glimpse into the lives and minds of women we admire and aspire to emulate." --Vice President at a large Wall St. Firm
"Ellyn Spragins was the keynote speaker for the kickoff event of the Random House Women's Network on September 27, 2007. In front of an enthusiastic crowd of over 100 female employees, Ellyn gave an engaging presentation about her experiences compiling and editing the stories for her book, WHAT I KNOW NOW: Letters To My Younger Self. Ellyn has a remarkable way of connecting with her audience and the stories that she relayed of the women she profiled were thought-provoking, moving, and humorous. Ellyn's visit has created a buzz throughout the company and based on the success of this first event, The Random House Women's Network has established itself as an important resource for all women at Random House." --Vicki Fishman - Manager, Employee Services, Random House, Inc. - Lauren Rosenberg - Director, Compensation, Random House, Inc., Co-Chairs, Random House Women's Network |
In preparation for a seminar event, Ellyn collaborates with a panel of three accomplished women handpicked by the event organizers to create letters to their younger selves. 