Six Minutes to Ensnare, Engage, and Enliven!

Remember that time when you were SO inspired about that idea that you wrote a submission for the Lightning talks segment of ASPIRE? Remember when you had an uplifting, thrilling, powerful experience being a Learn Like Lightning speaker? Remember when you set a Tupu goal to challenge yourself by stepping up and unleashing your ideas on a rapt audience? Remember when you and your story brought people together? 

No? Well, then, it’s time to make some memories, because this year’s ASPIRE Learn Like Lightning submissions are now open!  

2025 theme: HIKITIA | ELEVATE 

Are you ready to take the next step, to challenge yourself, to elevate yourself and others?  

Hikitia | Elevate signifies growth, innovation and the pursuit of excellence. It encourages us to rise to new challenges, improve our skills, and to think beyond our current roles, envisioning new possibilities for ourselves and for Waipapa Taumata Rau. It is all about taking what you’ve built, what you’ve learned, what you know, and what you do, and taking it to the next level! It is about driving your own development by using the resources around you and drawing on the strengths of your peers and teams.  

Whāia te iti kahurangi ki te tūohu koe, me he maunga teitei   

Seek the treasure which you value dearly. If you should bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain.  

This whakataukī challenges us to pursue our dreams and goals, to persevere through adversity and only slow down if the obstacle is truly great. It sets a wero (challenge) to think about goals, barriers, desires and aspirations. It encourages us to step up and to elevate those around us. 

Hikitia | Elevate has 3 streams: 

Elevate your…Career 

Do you have insights to share about skills development, career planning or crafting, identifying and building on strengths, growth, adapting to career change – planned or unexpected, how to have meaningful career conversations, or making network-boosting connections? This is your stream! 

Elevate your…Storytelling 

If you love weaving a yarn or two and think you have something others would find useful, this stream is for you! Think creativity in the workplace, communication skills, influencing skills, success stories (how did you, your team, or a team you admire do it?), how to find your own story, narratives surrounding our communities and how to ensure the great ones get airtime, tips on how we can better share stories across Waipapa Taumata Rau. 

Elevate your…Wellbeing 

Could you show others how you’ve elevated YOUR wellbeing? Perhaps you have found that elusive work-life balance, survived change, worked on your EQ or made successful healthy lifestyle changes. Are you knowledgeable about accessibility in the workplace, digital wellbeing, staying safe online, using AI to make the most of your time, supporting others facing challenges, or promoting resilience? 

When writing your LLL outline, please think about the following: 

– Being clear and succinct in the summary of your topic (remember, you only have 6 minutes)  
– What’s your hook? How will you capture your audience’s attention? Why will your topic resonate with or be important to them?  
– How your topic relates to our theme and the University  
– How your topic will look and feel on the day – any specific presentation elements you are considering such as PowerPoint slides, music, a costume, interpretive dance…

We will have online and in-person (at our venue) rehearsals, during which there are plenty of opportunities to meet the other speakers and our team, practise, get feedback and feel comfortable in the environment. Let us know here if you need or would like any specific support from our team. 

If you have any questions you’d like answered before you submit, please email aspireconference@auckland.ac.nz.  

Submissions close: Thursday, 24 April 2025

Submission Results Notified: Friday, 9 May 2025

Conference date: Tuesday, 1 July 2025