An Amazing Mentorship Experience

Tuesday, Oct. 16 was the first event for the 2012-2013 Mentorship program run by the Canadian Public Relations Society in Hamilton. This year began with a different pairing strategy as they had the 10 mentees and 10 mentors participate in a speed-matching. We had 2 minutes to chat with each mentor, jot down notes and determine common grounds. Two minutes is not nearly long enough to say all that you want to say, but impressions are usually made within the first 30 seconds of meeting someone. This was 10 first impressions in a row. I don’t think I have had such a great opportunity to practice my handshakes and smiles. It was daunting to say the least, but I enjoyed it as a unique challenge, and it was great for networking.

Al, my mentor.

 At the end we had to choose our top picks and we were instantaneously matched with a mentor. My mentor Alexander (Al) Luchin was a lucky match for me. Al is the President and CEO of Careers Compass Canada, and it is hard to believe that such a busy professional could give his time to meet with me for mentor sessions.

Monday, Oct. 29 was our first meeting. We met at a Starbucks and ordered some tea and we both learned more about the other. It was remarkable how well Al understood the direction that I wanted to take with my career. His support of my educational and career development objectives was encouraging, which has made me even more committed to pursuing them. 

I felt like I was a sponge soaking up all the valuable advice he had for me including tips for interviews, resumes and networking. The hour did not seem like enough time as we went over by another 20 minutes.  Thankfully, we have many meetings to come as the program runs until April.

I hope that as a mentee I can give back to my mentor in some way. Next semester, with the other mentees I will be teaching the mentors how to better utilize social media in business practices. I think this will be a great chance to reverse the role and find out (at least a little) what it is like being a mentor.

I had always hoped for a mentorship and having one organized by the CPRS has been great as I not only got one mentor, but many professional connections. I have discovered that a mentorship is valuable to both those who have no direction and feel lost and those who know exactly what they want. The mentorship program is competitive and open to students in postgraduate PR programs at various local schools; I am enjoying the experience so much that I strongly recommend that future Mohawk students apply. It is not a large commitment, yet you get one-on-one time with a PR professional who is willing to offer first-hand experiences and guidance to a beginner.

To read more about my personal journey into PR, check out my personal blog P.S. I Love PR