Dear Subscriber,
Success never happens by going it alone. We all need people who believe in us, who support us, who even tell us how we can be better. When I started out as a reporter at the Jackson Citizen Patriot many years ago, I was lucky enough to have two exceptional women mentor me into a better reporter, and later, editor.
That kind of support is even more important for young women starting off in today’s work force, where most fields are still male-dominated.
That’s why I’m excited MLive Media Group is the Grand Rapids sponsor of Mentoring Monday, a nationwide event Feb. 24 for women. MLive is sponsoring the event in Michigan with our parent company, Advance Local.
Mentoring Monday pairs successful women in a variety of fields with young women seeking advice and inspiration. It runs from 8-10:30 a.m. at Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park. The event will feature group sessions and one-on-one coaching, as well as a keynote speaker.
Having it be a woman-to-woman event is important, said Terry Barclay, one of the mentors for the event. Barclay is CEO of Inforum, a Detroit-and Grand Rapids organization founded by women in 1962 to support other professional women, and to help companies build diverse, gender-balanced businesses.
“We have to make sure people are seeing women in incredible leadership roles. It sparks a sense of possibility – ‘I could be her!’ There’s no way to replace that,” Barclay told me this week.
Roughly 30 mentors, including Barclay, are expected to be available for as approximately 250 mentees. Last year nationwide, about 8,600 women learned from 1,700 mentors during the event.
The benefits of effective mentoring are four-fold, Barclay said: - Increased self-awareness: “Mentors can be an honest mirror for you … it’s not about fixing everything that’s wrong with you, it’s to be aware of it so it doesn’t become a blind spot.”
- Confidence: “I’ve had mentors who’ve seen potential in me before I was aware of it. They put me in situations I wasn’t sure I could handle, but they saw something in me and they opened the door. That’s how you build confidence — put yourself in stretch situations and accomplish it.”
- Planning: “Mentors help you sort through options and zero in on a critical path forward.”
- Connections: “Success is far more dependent on the strategic connections we form than we may think. Skills are just the table stakes.”
Inforum includes male board members who are allies in its work, and help companies connect the dots on issues of diversity that go beyond gender, Barclay said. But she noted that Mentoring Monday’s focus on woman-to-woman support highlights the uphill climb that remains for gender equity in the workplace.
“Women are fully half of the work force, but (there is) still some stubbornness in making progress at leadership levels,” she said. “I hear all the time that companies are in a global fight for talent, and women present an incredible opportunity. Diversity and inclusion have become an economic imperative in Michigan.”
Barclay said one theme of Mentoring Monday is “do it scared.” She said studies show that women don’t apply for a position or promotion unless they have 100% of the skills needed, but that men typically will apply if they think they have about 60% of those skills.
“It’s about putting yourself out there and taking risks,” Barclay said. “And, realizing that the greatest reward comes when you are able to toss your hat in there.”
Tickets are $45 and remain available for the Grand Rapids event. Scholarships are available for women who are unable to afford the fee. For additional event information and to get tickets, click here.
If you know of someone who could benefit, pass along this column.
And, by the way, thank you, Sandy and Eileen, for mentoring me. I always will be grateful you saw the potential in me. |
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Sincerely,
John Hiner
Vice President of Content for MLive Media Group
Share your thoughts with him at editor@mlive.com |
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