Jacinta’s She Leads Diploma Journey

Hear from one of our She Leads Diploma graduates as she reflects on her experience in the program — the insights gained, the challenges explored, and the leadership journey it inspired. Her story highlights the power of inclusive leadership and the value of learning in a supportive, purpose-driven environment. From personal growth to professional impact, her reflections offer a compelling glimpse into what the She Leads Diploma makes possible.

Good afternoon everyone,

When I first enrolled in this course through work, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I hadn’t pursued any formal study since graduating university, and to be honest, I wasn’t 100% sure about diving back in. But I knew this was a great opportunity to learn in a supportive environment, with an organisation whose values genuinely align with mine. That made the whole idea feel far less intimidating.

From our very first workshop, it was clear to me that this would be a positive, supportive, and rewarding experience, and that’s largely thanks to our wonderful facilitators, Deanne and Pip. In the lead up to today, I’ve been reflecting a bit on my career so far, and I’ve been very fortunate that for the most part, I’ve been surrounded and uplifted by strong, supportive, confident women who lead by example. So for me at least, it seemed like a no-brainer to tackle further study in an environment that celebrates that kind of leadership.

A bit of background about me: I’ve worked in the diversity and inclusion space for the past five or so years, I find a lot of intrinsic value in that, and the way this course was framed and delivered really resonated with me.

We took an intersectional approach – exploring the challenges and opportunities for women in leadership.

We challenged traditional ideas/concepts of what leadership is -it doesn’t have to be loud or authoritative.

It is often the quiet achievers who gently guide their team, lift others up, and lead by example that define productive leadership.

We recognised that leadership happens at all levels of an organisation, you don’t have to be managing a big team to be a good leader.

Looking back over my notes from the course, a few highlights stand out:

Hearing from our guest speakers – Vanessa Vanderhoek’s session in particular left a lasting impression. Her mid-career pivot and re-training to become an expert in a different field was so impressive.

Our peer presentations
– I learned so much across a wide range of topics, and I still fondly remember Sarah’s fun presentation on dog training with her very cute stand in prop (only wish she brought her real dog!)

Finally, not the most critical, but definitely the most fun: the spaghetti and marshmallow tower challenge. The competition was fierce, but it was a creative way to explore team building and communication under pressure.

Now honestly, I think most of us in the group already had the foundational skills and capabilities we explored throughout the course. But now, we have the tools, language, and confidence to articulate and apply these things more intentionally in our workplaces and in our relationships with colleagues and clients and stakeholders.

I’ll wrap it up there, and leave you with a quote that’s stuck with me since our second workshop with Vanessa about our choices to be leaders, and that is:

“The heaviest burdens that we carry are the thoughts in our head… choose your thoughts to support the kind of leader you want to be.”
Vanessa Vanderhoek

Jacinta’s She Leads Diploma Journey

We took an intersectional approach – exploring the challenges and opportunities for women in leadership.

We challenged traditional ideas/concepts of what leadership is -it doesn’t have to be loud or authoritative.

It is often the quiet achievers who gently guide their team, lift others up, and lead by example that define productive leadership.

We recognised that leadership happens at all levels of an organisation, you don’t have to be managing a big team to be a good leader.

Looking back over my notes from the course, a few highlights stand out:

Hearing from our guest speakers – Vanessa Vanderhoek’s session in particular left a lasting impression. Her mid-career pivot and re-training to become an expert in a different field was so impressive.

Our peer presentations – I learned so much across a wide range of topics, and I still fondly remember Sarah’s fun presentation on dog training with her very cute stand in prop (only wish she brought her real dog!)

Finally, not the most critical, but definitely the most fun: the spaghetti and marshmallow tower challenge. The competition was fierce, but it was a creative way to explore team building and communication under pressure.

Our peer presentations
– I learned so much across a wide range of topics, and I still fondly remember Sarah’s fun presentation on dog training with her very cute stand in prop (only wish she brought her real dog!)