“The delicate balance of mentoring someone is not creating them in your own image but giving them the opportunity to create themselves.” – Steven Spielberg
This month we bring you very special edition of the Roots and Wings catch-up sessions. We heard from two of our mentors on how they were enjoying the journey, some of their highlights and future plans.
Life is full of serendipitous moments and becoming a Mentor on the Roots and Wings program in 2022 has been one of these. I was paired with Sarafina Sibiya after our “speed dating” session earlier in the year and some will say it was a match made in heaven though I would like to give credit to Linda and Jenna for their intuitive match-making abilities. I have discovered as much as this is personal and professional journey for Sarafina, it is much of the same for me as a mentor. Some of my biggest insights have been the value of active listening and giving guidance versus advice. Meeting up with other incredible mentors and mentees has been equally enjoyable and we have exchanged many ideas on some thought-proving topics. I am looking forward to the final presentations by the mentees in November which will showcase their individual journeys and learnings from the Roots and Wings program. This is most certainly an opportunity I would #showup for again in the future. – Michele Barclay (Constantia Insurance Company)
I have always known that my purpose in life is to be inspirational to others and the Roots and Wings programme gave me an opportunity to. It has been such a great honor for me to be part of this programme and giving back to the very platform that contributed to my life success. They say leaders are not born but made like everything else that can be made. I have always known that I would be a leader that is breaking boundaries and influencing others in a positive way.
My journey with Monic has been very close to my heart and amazing. When we first met in the speed dating event for me it was like dejavoo because she reminded me of myself so much when I joined the Insurance industry. Monic was super shy and I could tell from the conversation we had that she was very nervous and lacked confidence.
I must say that the Monic you see now and the Monic I met that day is a totally different person. One of the biggest things that we have both been working on is confidence and stepping out of the comfort zone and I am so proud and amazed by how much Monic has grown and steeped out of her comfort zone.
In such a short space of time we have both grown as individuals and made amazing memories that we will forever cherish. – Sibanesihle Moyo (Santam)
Article written by: Jabu Mtimkulu
