26 Oct Three reasons why I believe in the power of mentorship

Phearong, Wedu’s Rising Star from Cambodia

We are thrilled to announce the upcoming Global Mentoring Walk Bangkok on 16 November 2013! The Global Mentoring Walk Bangkok highlights the importance of women’s leadership and accelerates the impact of women leaders through mentoring.

As Co-founder of Wedu, there are three reasons why I believe in the transformative power of mentorship. First is that, through the knowledge and experience of a mentor, the mentee can leapfrog the learning process. She can learn to avoid making the same mistakes just by having a personal “guide” for life. I am fortunate to have Virginia Littlejohn, President and CEO of Quantum Leaps, as my mentor. Virginia has a vast experience in supporting female entrepreneurs for decades. She generously shared with me everything she knows about business development and strategy planning for a start-up organization, and this was immensely helpful.

Second is that mentorship builds confidence. I believed this was true before Wedu started its mentorship programme, but the impact of mentorship on Wedu’s Rising Stars has been a revelation! The most impressive has been Phearong from Cambodia. When we met Phearong in March 2012, she was a timid girl from rural Cambodia who shied away from speaking to people she did not know. Today, thanks partly to the support given by her mentor, Phearong confidently stands up to present in workshops and explains how mentorship has helped in her personal and professional growth.

The third is that mentorship encourages you to take leadership and aim for higher. By having a mentor who believes in you, and who vouches for you, who is willing to take the risk to share her network, you know automatically that she will go the extra mile to give you a hand when you need it. And this is very powerful. My mentor has pushed me to step up and make more things happen in Wedu.

It is these 3 reasons, why we are hosting Bangkok’s first Global Mentoring Walk to bring together established and emerging women leaders, so as to foster learning and development for both the mentor and mentee. So we invite you to follow the #WeduWalk on Facebook and Twitter, and to join Wedu’s mentorship movement!