A couple weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending Entrepreneur magazine’s 2012 Growth Conference in Long Beach, Calif., as a member of The UPS Store team, which sponsored the event.

For the more than 850 entrepreneurs who convened at this year’s Growth Conference, there was an undeniable feeling of optimism and determination to learn and grow their businesses.

I admire entrepreneurs. I know many in my own life and career. Each of The UPS Store franchisees is an entrepreneur in his or her own right. What they do is truly amazing. It takes an enormous amount of courage to chart a path, not knowing where you’ll end up in the end.

The conference kicked off with a keynote address from entrepreneur and small business expert Chris Brogan. I was fortunate to sit at a table with one entrepreneur who was hoping to glean some motivation from the speakers to help her get started with her business.

When Chris took the stage, I knew we were in for a fantastic day of learning and growth. Chris spoke about the hard lessons of being an entrepreneur and what you can do to focus on growth in your business. Being the social media buff that he is, Chris spoke about the importance of focusing on relationships versus transactions within social media, becoming a relationship-minded business. (Watch the complete video of Chris Brogan’s keynote.)

The rest of the day was packed with great content and networking opportunities. Several leading entrepreneurs and small business experts hosted workshop sessions that helped attendees learn how to raise capital to start a business, increase productivity and output, use social media to market to consumers and create consumer passion for your brand. One of our very own franchisees, Gary Williams Jr., was also featured in a panel discussion during one of the workshop sessions.

The highlight of the day was the awards luncheon, where Entrepreneur magazine and The UPS Store awarded the winners of the Entrepreneur of 2011 contest. The most inspiring one came from winner Lee Rhodes, a cancer survivor who founded glassybaby. Lee donates a significant portion of the company’s revenue to help fund treatment to cancer patients. Her goal is to donate 10% of revenue.

Check out the highlights from the entire day.