Senator Warner’s fourth annual Virginia’s Young Professional Summit, held this weekend in Blacksburg, was a huge success. Around 300 students and young professionals from around the Commonwealth gathered at Virginia Tech’s Lane Stadium to network and get professional development advice from a range of excellent speakers and panelists.

The group gained invaluable insights on everything from the importance of creating meaningful connections, to personal branding, leveraging social media, and resume and interview tips from employers.

Keynote speaker Jack Andraka, a 17-year-old inventor, scientist, and cancer researcher, blew the audience away with his remarkably inspiring story of perseverance and determination. At 15, Jack invented an inexpensive diagnostic test to detect pancreatic, ovarian and lung cancers earlier than was previously possible.

In his remarks, Senator Warner reminisced about his own experiences as a young professional, and more importantly, how he learned from his failures. He told the audience of Virginia YP’s that “there’s nothing wrong with failure; it’s how you respond to it.”

If you want to see more of the conversation from the Virginia YP Summit, search: #VAYPS2014 on twitter