Jen Werner

My success has been learning how to see myself more clearly, not just for my own growth, but in ways that allow me to support others. As a reluctant leader, going through my own moment of self-awareness changed everything. When I finally had someone who listened without trying to fix or advise, I began to understand how often small misunderstandings at work turn into much bigger challenges simply because we don’t yet have the language to talk about them early.

That experience shaped the way I lead and the way I work with teams today. I’ve seen how clarity, shared language, and self-awareness can prevent unnecessary strain, strengthen relationships, and help people work together more effectively. Now, I support others in having those same kinds of breakthroughs before miscommunication becomes burnout, disengagement, or turnover.

The best career advice I’ve received was that I didn’t need to become someone else to lead. For a long time, I thought leadership meant being more certain, more polished, or more authoritative. Learning that I could lead from who I already am, with awareness and intention, changed the way I approach both my work and how I support others.

One of the hardest parts of entrepreneurship is the emotional whiplash that can come with it. You’ll have days where everything clicks and you feel confident in the direction you’re heading and days, sometimes right after, where you question every decision you’ve made and whether any of it is working.

My advice is to stay the course and stay connected to what matters most to you. Those values become an anchor when the results aren’t immediate or when things don’t go as planned. We, as women, often invest in everyone else before we invest in ourselves, and it can feel discouraging when that investment doesn’t pay off right away. Building something meaningful requires that we grant ourselves the same patience, care, and commitment that we offer to others.

One of the biggest challenges in my field is that many of the issues we experience, like miscommunication or leadership strain, don’t always feel urgent until they start affecting how people are showing up at work or working together. When things feel manageable on the surface, it’s easy to put off investing in development.

I see a lot of people who are constantly investing in supporting others but hesitate to invest in their own growth. And when they do finally take that step and don’t see immediate results, it can make it even harder to try again. Helping individuals and teams understand how small misunderstandings can turn into much bigger challenges, and giving them the language to talk about those earlier, is where I see the greatest opportunity for meaningful change.

Staying true to who you are is fundamental to everything I do, both personally and professionally. In my work with leaders, I often remind them that they don’t have to choose between towing the company line and being themselves, they were promoted because of who they are, not in spite of it.

Supporting girls and women in seeing that it’s okay to be who they are is also deeply important to me. Through my work with A Bolder Way Forward for Utah and as a Big Sister, I’m passionate about helping girls, especially in middle school, feel encouraged in what genuinely interests them, whether that’s math, science, or something else entirely, rather than pushed toward more traditional gender expectations.

I believe that if we can help girls trust that who they are is enough at a younger age, we won’t have to spend decades helping women regain confidence in their voice later in life. My work with Southwest Forensic Nursing and Healthcare reflects this same commitment, supporting the people who support those in difficult situations as they reclaim autonomy and move forward in ways that feel right for them.