The mentorship of young women should be used as a tool to emotionally and physically prepare them for the perceived boys club. Through mentorship, experienced women share great insights with their mentees and bust a lot of myths that have the potential to hold them back. Corporate affairs director for Unilever South & Southern Africa, Sibonile Dube, shares simple, yet crucial principles that mentors must share.
Prove your value
Firstly, as a young woman, seeking equal opportunities in the workplace requires proving your worth. There is nothing as demotivating as being perceived as a token employee. Hard work, and not just your talent, is key. Tim Notke’s says: “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.” It’s for this reason that average or standard performance is not good enough because that will not distinguish you from exceptional. It means pushing boundaries and delivering beyond expectation.
Set your sights on self-branding
Self-branding is another fundamental aspect for any woman pursuing their career. It involves promoting your professional image and establishing quality network with the aim of standing out. When mentored properly, you will learn to do this with humility and still have impact. Self-branding has a lot to do with ethics and integrity in the industry you are in. Remember, it takes years to build a good reputation, but just a few seconds to destroy it.
Balance – compromise and control
Another point of anxiety for any ambitious young woman is how to still make it in the corporate world and balance everything with a healthy social life. Career-driven young women still seek to find love, get married and have a family. Mentors can give practical guidelines by making an example of their own lives and demonstrating how they have managed to strike the balance in their lives. While there is no set formula on how to do this, insight to an authentic example will assist you in coming up with your own approach to finding her balance.
Authenticity Seals the Deal
Lastly, authenticity is crucial. It’s not necessary to sell your soul to reach the top – be yourself. To become a great leader one does not have to exhibit masculine macho tendencies. After all, to be successful, organisations require a balance between X-chromosome and Y-chromosome capabilities. Female leaders who have walked the path before will advise that pretending to be who you are not is not sustainable. It is an energy-sapper and emotionally draining.
