How to be Ready for the Curate Summit
How can you get the most out of the Curate Summit? I have a few suggestions for you to consider based on my experience at the last two years of Curate.
1. Bring your questions and be humble to receive advice.
In what area of your life are you looking for advice or direction? The heart of Curate is mentoring. Take advantage of the time at the summit to connect with these wise women and learn from them. It takes humility to apply advice from women in a different stage of life or from a different background, but consider how their words can affect you. In what areas do you need to grow? Perhaps a talk from Curate can help shape the way you develop yourself this semester. The speakers and event staff want encourage and connect with Hillsdale students, so feel free to ask follow up questions over email or coffee. After the 2021 Summit, I started meeting with a mentor over lunch. She listened, encouraged me as I talked through my week, and prayed with me. Not every Curate speaker will be available for a lunch date. However, I hope I can encourage you to be confident enough to make a new friend or bring a tough question to a mentor at the Summit.
2. Notice the varying expressions of femininity and recognize your strengths.
Curate is unique, because you get to spend the day learning from other women. Consider the way the older women in the room carry themselves. See the differing expressions of beauty. Even if you can’t put your finger on a question to ask, you can watch the ladies around you. Perhaps there’s a woman who shares your passions or struggles and is just a few steps ahead on her journey. It takes time to know and understand another person, and Curate may be the perfect opportunity for you to initiate an encouraging friendship. It’s tempting for me to focus on the qualities or strengths I see in others without acknowledging my own distinct design. Instead of becoming overwhelmed by comparison, notice the intangible distinctions of femininity in the way speakers talk about emotions, spiritual life, leadership tendencies, and more. There’s a different strength in the way a woman thinks and feels, and you can see that expressed by the women in our community at Curate. You might say that we are radiant.
3. Take the opportunity to refocus and consider how you can prepare for what comes next.
Some topics may seem too distant from your current context in college to merit your interest. Think again! If you’re interested in dating, marriage, or motherhood in the future, consider attending sessions that address those aspects of life. Curate can help prepare and equip you for those seasons even if you’re not there yet.
Since the Curate Summit falls at the end of January, I’ve incorporated it into my process of goal setting and intentionality for the year ahead. I still have my vision board from the 2020 Curate Summit. The themes I picked to emphasize in that small craft continued to resonate in my life throughout 2020. In responding to the unexpected struggles at the beginning of the pandemic, I needed the reminders to be faithful in my school work, relationships, and spiritual life. I also needed reminders to make bold choices and be outgoing. The magazine clippings on my vision board that captured those ideas helped bring me back to the commitment I made to myself while at Curate. I find myself easily distracted and derailed by daily concerns, but the summit was a valuable time for me to refocus on larger goals. Perhaps you can use Curate to reevaluate your priorities and live more on purpose. After the Summit, I recommend setting a date to journal or reflect with a friend about what you learned.
