Blog

Going into the DECA Leadership Development Academy (LDA) Conference in my first year with DECA, I didn’t know what to expect. With the shift to online learning, I am going to be honest; I didn’t expect anything more than another Zoom meeting, which because of the pandemic, I've gotten very used to and tired of. But I was so surprised by the wealth of information that I was able to gather from all the presenters.

The DECA Leadership Development Academy (LDA) was an amazing experience where I was put on a path to increase my knowledge about what it means to be a leader while being able to communicate to my peers and make new friends.

DECA LDA inspired me to believe in myself

Hello everyone, my name is Lochan and my blog is about the DECA LDA conference run by the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF). Firstly, I would like to give a big thanks to DECA for accepting me into this program with open arms.

I would like to start by explaining the events that led me to the LDA.

Hi everyone! My name is Inayat, and as a first-year DECA student at North Park Secondary School, I decided to take part in the DECA LDA Conference earlier this year! This conference was one of the best opportunities I’ve ever taken part in, as I was able to learn so much about not only leadership, but business in general.

“While I am stuck in isolation,

Keeping my distance and staying away,

Two things brightened my pandemic stay:

One was my XBOX Madden NFL gameplay and the other,

The fantastic learning through DECA!!”

The importance of teamwork in a virtual setting

The CFA Society Ethics Challenge was a commitment over the course of several months, starting in late 2020 and carrying on into May 2021. The various rounds involved preparing for case studies, writing reports, creating presentations, and ensuring we were performing to the best of our abilities in order to succeed.

hEDGE inspired me to believe in myself.

I admit I am a little sad to be signing off from the hEDGE Financial Services Conference executive team. These past three years I’ve spent organizing the conference have been one of the most rewarding yet challenging experiences. However, I would not have had it any other way. The hEDGE experience has forever transformed the way I think, lead, and work within a team — and it was definitely for the better. There were three key lessons I picked up over the years that I know will accompany me for the rest of my career.

After five rounds of elimination, our CFA Institute Research Challenge (IRC) team moved on to the Global Finals, making us the only 3-person team and the third Canadian team in history to make it to the top 5 worldwide.

After winning first place in the Canadian division of the Venture Capital Investing Competition (VCIC), our team was fortunate enough to participate and move on to the global finals.