What do Mia Freedman, Jacinda Ardern and Oprah have in common?
Not only are all three women incredible leaders who are successful in their respective careers, but they each also had a mentor.
Mia was mentored by Lisa Wilkinson, Jacinda was mentored by Helen Clark and Oprah was mentored by Barbara Walters. In fact, it’s fair to say that these three have now become Mentors to others.
One of the most successful initiatives we have driven since the MWI committee began is our longstanding Mentor Program. Since 2010, we have worked hard to create valuable connections between senior marketing leaders and like-minded women within marketing.
At MWI we know a Mentor and Mentee relationship can be an invaluable relationship in your career. It’s a connection that can last for years or just a few months but can have an instrumental effect on your career.
According to a Gartner study, mentored employees are 5 times more likely to be promoted than those that were not mentored. If that’s not reason enough to secure a Mentor, let us continue to explain the importance of having a Mentor figure.
- A Mentor acts as an independent adviser to help you navigate through a career transition, a difficult time or to challenge you to be ready for that next step up.
- A Mentor naturally motivates, inspires and encourages you on your journey to greatness.
- A Mentor challenges your way of thinking to become open-minded.
- A Mentor relationship provides a safe environment that allows you to let your guard down, be open and honest without feeling self-conscious.
- A Mentor offers an outside perspective and extracts lessons from ‘failures’.
- A Mentor helps you to identify skill gaps, improve self-awareness through constructive feedback.
- A Mentor helps you to adapt to change, providing you with the tools to navigate and adapt to an ever changing workplace. This is an increasingly important trait in not only the current climate but for your career.
- Lastly a Mentor and Mentee relationship can become an important extension of not only your professional but your personal support system. It is someone you can rely on and seek advice from outside of your workplace.
Have we convinced you to introduce a Mentor into your life?
We are always recruiting Mentors for our Marketing Mentor Program. Our 6-month program is designed to inspire, encourage and guide the next generation of marketing leaders. If you have a few hours a month to give to a mentee, either in person or remotely, please complete our short form here.
