Hello, everyone. I'm so glad to be here. Thank you, Polina, for inviting me to this, important webinar meeting all those, wonderful ladies, virtually. My name is Sairan Aqrawi. I'm a strategic engineering leader. And I, just like many of you, I started my career focusing very strongly on technical excellence. Over the years, I start, realizing something very important that success and fulfillment are not always the same thing. I'm glad to be here so I can share with you that how we can move from simply having a career to create an impact and finding our true self, how we can have an impact and reflect purpose in life. So basically how we can make a simple career path that sounds and look boring to us to something more impactful and leaving purpose and value to others. So I will start, basically asking each one if you can grab a pen and a small notebook. I'm gonna do the exercise with you. I'll start with a question. 

By how many of you felt that your career is successful but is not really fulfilling? I always say to my client, technical excellence will get you here, but purpose will take you way further. So my first exercise is to you, what one thing that you wish if your employer and carrier has in order to make you feel more fulfillment? For example, if you are technical, you are an engineer, but you will love to mentor younger generation. What is that one thing that you wish if your job has so you can utilize it to leave a better impact in future? If you can write it down, I I know mine. I already wrote it down. Just write it down and we'll come back to it in the further slides. 

I can share something about myself, my my journey as an engineering. When I graduate from Washington, George Washington University, completed my master's in system integration back in 2017. I was very excited, pumped. I was like, yes, I can do this. Let's just start my doctoral. So without having any break, I start my doctor program right after that. At the very first semester at my doctor program, the university asked me if I'm willing to have a mentor hours with a younger engineer, kind of walk them through the real life of the women in tech, what they should expect at the workforce. I said, okay. I'm not a speaker. I'm a technical leader, but let me just take that chance. So I started the mentoring, hours and I started speaking with those, young ladies, and they were very inspired and engaging with me. 

And after I finished the session, the head of the department of women in engineering, she contacted me, and she asked me if I happen to be a coach or a mentor. I reply back. I say, no. I'm just a technical engineer. I'm just I spend so many hours solving complex, you know, engineering problems. I I never thought about that. She make me so curious, and that's what I know that pivoting and changing your career path is always something very good add value to you. So I become curious about coaching. I joined ICF. I become a certified coach, and I never looked back, and I never finished my doctoral. I was I I realized that being having a PhD degree or a doctorate degree, it's good for so many people who want to pursue that with all respect, but that's that was another thing for me. That's how I know that I can extend my skills to a broader scale in order to help other women in technology to leave an impact and find their purpose. 

So I hope you all bought something that's one thing that you wish your career will allow you to do at your job in order to leave a better impact. Why purpose matter? So the gap between success and fulfillment, like we said, it's not the same. We think that if we succeed, if we foresee our degree, we get credential, we finish our master and PhD, and we will be successful and happy. But that's not the real that's not the reality. The fulfillment come with other things. And this is per study, per research, and I found out that women, society of, society of women engineers, they found out seventy percent of women in engineering report feeling underutilized or disconnected from their degree. So they got a degree, but they feel that there is something missing. 

There is way more other things that they can add to their career in order to leave an impact. So technical skills alone will not guarantee influence and fulfillment. And I see that with many clients that I have. They come to me. They they tell me about their career and asking, I have the highest degree. I'm a chief engineer. I am leading a team. But there is something deep down that they know they are not there yet. There is no fulfillment. They pick up their paycheck. They enjoy the paycheck, but it's such a routine job, nine to five. They don't feel that fulfillment. They don't feel they being heard or their voice is being heard. They don't see their impact. There is no sense of belonging. This is why they know there is something missing in their career. 

This is very important slides and this is what I want you to grab the pen and and the notebook again. People talk about passion. There's a lot of engineer that I talk with that are good in other skills. They write books. They speak. They do mandala. They do art. They paint. That's a passion, and nothing wrong with that. Each one of us have a passion. Right? But passion is not enough. You need to find that sweet spot. You know their passion, you know your strength, and you know your impact. So passion basically is something energize you. Like, you are so passionate about painting, but you are a technical woman, but you love to paint. That's your passion. Strength, it's basically those skills that you really skill at. Strength are the stuff that you do. You don't even sweat about it. 

You don't even feel it's it's a burden on you. You just do it so naturally. And impact, basically, it's where your job or career skills that's leave leave a change that create a change. So if we have those three skills or three circle and the intersection of that, that's what basically create your purpose. So now we're gonna take ten second to fifteen second, and we're gonna write each each one of you gonna write one passion you have, one strength. I put strengths to either one or couple, and I'm sure you all have more than one strength. You are all strong leaders. And one impact. And when you write it down, look at it again and see what is the intersection of those three. The intersection of those three, that's what's really your true purpose. 

So I will leave you all with ten second, and I'm gonna do the same thing. And I'm gonna write it down, and we're gonna come back to the slide. I hope you all had, enough time to find one passion you have, one strength that you have, and one impact, and how that intersection is create the sweet spot and that's what's your purpose. Live in that intersection. For me, always the passion, it was the innovation and technology from day one. Since I was a teenage, I love math. I love technology. I was a problem solver in many ways. And I always knew my strength is the capability and my ability actually to teach younger generation about those technology and innovation. And I never thought it's it's a hard job to do, to train and teach others. And I did teaching so in so many ways even in my younger, years of career. 

My impact, I see that I can make that change and and and in areas like universities, like engineering institution. That's when I realized my purpose of life is to encourage and guide women. That's technology and skills. Any any skills you have, it can be monetized. You can take them as a hidden gem that you already have it, and you can monetize it as a side business. Or even if you don't want to find or create a side business, you can still finding that purpose and utilize it and bring it to the surface and and make a better impact to your community and the society. How we can take those skills to leadership? So when you have technical skills, if you are an engineer, even if you are not an engineer, you are a lawyer and you are in finance, any skills you have, you can make that skills a big asset to a leadership. 

When you gain that ability to to solve complex, problem, that's what has make you stand out as a leader. If you look at your organization now, you will see the leaders or the CEO of the company not necessarily is the person who has the highest credential or the highest degree, but if you look if you look at their skills, you'll see that leader have the ability to solve problems, be a role model. 

This is why he become a leader, and he can lead his team to solving those complex problem. So having a technical skills is a plus. I encourage each one to earn more training and certification, but don't believe that credential is the only source for you to grow as a leader. You gotta acquire other skills. For example, communication, negotiation, gain the ability and train how to sell your skills at interview. Because your background as an engineer is not enough to be a leader. You need other skills in order to stand out and be unique and be differentiated from others in the industry. So now another exercise, which of your current skills could create an impact if seen through a leadership lens? 

Write it down if it's one things or if it's two things. Write it down a piece of paper. Say I am in technical industry, but I have another skills that I can utilize it to become a better leader in future because you all have it. Like I said, I always call these core genius as like a hidden gem, like you already have it inside you. It's just being labeled differently. You need to really design it in a way that's being utilized and make money out of it. So going going back to career pivot, that doesn't mean that starting from scratch. I always tell my client when they approach me to coach them, they said, we've been in in technology, but we realize that that's not the things for us, and we are sad that we are hitting our forty and fifty, and we have to start from scratch. 

There is nothing called start from scratch. All the years that you you spend in technology thinking this is not the right things for you, it was not a waste. There is no waste in that. You earn the skills and and and and the the the the ability, you create that immune system to start another career or another path in your life. So whatever you've done before, it was not a waste. It's prepared you for what is coming. Pivoting is very important because if you continue doing the same thing without feeling the joy and the impact, you are wasting your time. And that's going back to the earlier when I talked about so many client when they come to come to me and they said they have a great job, but they don't feel fulfillment. 

They don't feel the joy. That's when I know that that what is missing in their career, it's the sense of belonging. They need to find out and redesign their career in a way and creating that work life that make them feel they have an impact somewhere, not just a paycheck. So now call to action, again, another exercise. Write down one career move that you have been hesitating to take and one skill that you already have that that make it possible. Just the simple things. I'm not asking you to change the entire job career for you. But if you are in any industry, but deep down, you know that you have another skill that you can utilize in order to bring it to the service and for others, and also if you are willing to have it as a side business, which I never call it a side hustle, I call it a side heaven or haven because if it's become a hustle and a burden that's not as that there is no joy in it. 

You have to really find the joy on the things that you're doing on the side. Write it down. Keep it on the same piece of paper and go back to it and see what else I can do. You might have the highest degree in your industry. You have a good post. You are higher up at your organization. But still, you see that you have more potential to teach and guide others towards leadership at your industry. That's one thing that you keep hiding it. It's like, again, a hidden gem. Like, it's a carrier. It's a paycheck. I'm fine. I'm picking up my paycheck. I'm fine. No. It's not. You have so much to offer. Don't brush it off. Don't don't make that strength and passion and impact. Mute it again. You mute it for so many years. 

Don't mute it again. It's time for you to bring it to the surface. Clarity. When you have the clarity and influence, that's what's create the opportunity for each one of us. So tips for immediate action. If you develop thirty second value pitch, align the project with impact and visibility, ask for feedback and opportunity proactively in your organization. I'll give you an example. You'll see people come across and they introduce themselves. For example, let's say someone said, I'm a system engineer. Okay. System engineer. It sounds kind of like very it it's a copy paste. Right? It's very boring title. But if you try to make it a thirty second pitch, that's differentiate you from other system engineer. 

You can, for example, say, I help team to translate their complex obstacles to strategic solution. So fancy. It's the same system engineer, but you tweak the pitching line in a way people will love to listen more, and they will lean forward. They said, oh, you solve problem. Yeah. I'm a system engineer at the end, but I can create those obstacle to opportunity by strategically leading the team towards those solution. So again, write down those ability that you have. You know you are a lawyer, you are a doctor, you are a musician, you are an artist, but don't say those title. Don't label those title for you very plainly, like don't make it so boring. People love innovation. People love to hear more about you. 

Tweak those pitch in a way that people will be willing to hear more about your career. The most important slides here, I I don't want to be just inspiring and motivating you. That's not my intent. And every time when client come and say, oh, you motivate me. You inspire me. That's not my message ever in my consulting firm. What I love to do is to not kind of push or put a pressure, but I request, my client to take action. I've done so many, vision board, presentation to the ICF, to the Coaching Federation, and I always change the vision board title to action actionable board because I don't want you just to have a vision and stop. I don't want you to be inspired and motivated and just don't do anything. 

I want that action because those action, the the the the the action will breed to your confidence. You'll be confident by taking those action. Just being inspired and motivated. So the takeaway today, which is actionable, and I'm sure you all can do this. Again, go back to the three circle we have, identify your unique intersection, the passion, the strength, and the impact. What was your one passion, what was your strength, And what is your impact? And we said the intersection of those three, that's what is showing you your purpose. Reframe those skills as a lead leadership asset. Again, don't just think that your skills is is just a job, is nine to five. No. Try to reframe them and restructure them in a way that's become a leadership asset and not just a technical function. Take one immediate action. 

This week, ladies, take one immediate action. Pitch that idea. Start that side business. Take that opportunity to speak in a podcast on stage, anything that scare you the most, take action this week and do it. And you will see when you come out of that, action steps, you will be ten ten times better version of yourself. So the very last one I always emphasize most than anything else. Take one immediate action, craft your value pitch, apply for a stretch project, or mentor someone. Even if you don't want to start a business, mentor someone. Be a role model to someone at your job because when you mentor someone, that will multiply to a lot of effect for the entire team. 

By you sitting and just waiting for magic happen and and say, oh, my impact, purpose will come to me as as I go. If I work couple of job, then I will find my purpose. That's the inner job. That's something you need to discover. So purpose is not found is not found and and display in a tray for you. You have to design it. You have to look for it. And I want you to start redesigning your impact and purpose today. I always remember something from Robert Greene, he talked about it a lot especially in his mastery book. He said each one of us have a life purpose or life task. The magic is when you find that purpose and that task, that's where you feel the most fulfilled at your professional and in your personal life. 

I will be happy to connect with all of you. I am on LinkedIn. I have a website. I have a consulting firm, and I also am available in Instagram. And I'm