The idea for my business came because of a genuine need I saw during my career and through my own journey of mentorship.  My involvement with many schools brought me in connection with young adults who don't have the means to get a higher education.  In many cases this was because they did not have the financial wherewithal, nor did they have the experiences and network to help them make key educational and career decisions.  As I sat with these individuals, i realized that my background provided them a wealth of information that they would have otherwise not had.  From these conversations, I saw that I was providing them with the knowledge and opportunities that could help them with a variety of life decisions.   I understood and wanted to help because at one point in my life I had been where they are. 

 

When I came to this country as an immigrant, 30 years ago, I remember how I had struggled in college.  I started my college life with the hope of becoming a doctor. I, very quickly realized, that I did not have the passion or the grades to become one.  My father suggested engineering, even though he had no experience in the field.  I took his advice, even though I had no idea what an engineer did or what type of engineering I should jump into.  So, I took a chance and jumped into the biomedical engineering field because it seemed the most aligned with the medical field.  Again, I did all of this with no idea what a biomedical engineer did and what a future career would look like.  I did not even know what classes I needed to take or internships I needed to have to break into an engineering career.  I leaned on my experience, having been on my own since 15, to network and work with people who did.  Ultimately networking led me to my first connection, who took a risk on me and gave me an internship.  Eventually I would stumble through my engineering school and to my first job opportunity.  I started working with little to no skills to do the job I had been hired to do.  Through the kindness and faith of my mentor and a fellow engineer,  I persevered and quickly came up to speed.  As I progressed through many roles and responsibilities at many companies, I never really felt passionate about the technical work I was doing.  Ultimately, through the support of another mentor, who believed in me, I was tasked to start a business from scratch.  Here, I recognized that my true gift wasn't doing technical work, but building relationships and opportunities and helping to solve problems.  This self realization didn't come until much later in my career, which brings me to today and my yearn to help others in the way that I had been.  I recognize the tremendous positive impact those "mentors and connections" had on me and I want to pay it forward, by helping those at an early stage in their careers.

 

To that end, I am a firm believer in organic mentoring.  This starts with getting to know you and your goals in life.  It is important that you feel comfortable with me and my style of coaching.  I believe transparency and complete honesty are the best ways to help anyone.

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In many cases you may not know what it is your want to do or even where to start.  In this blank canvas is the opportunity to start a self discovery.  We always look at other people's paths in life and think that is what is best for us.  Instead, my approach is to first understand what are your interests and gifts.  From there, we start assessing how best we can leverage those gifts and interests.   

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Successful mentorship cannot stand on its own. I believe that an individual's greatest chances of success requires a continuous educational foundation paired with mentorship.  As part of the continued conversations, both the individual and I, will assess the educational situation to best determine what life and career decisions make the most sense.  For example, many students want to be doctors, but their life situations and/or abilities may not align well with this career aspiration.  However, they may have plenty of other medical career opportunities that may be better suited for them.  It is best to determine this earlier than later in their educational journey.  

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For parents, being one myself, I understand how we all want the best for our children.  I believe in working with the parents, sharing my experiences, so that they feel comfortable with how best I can help their young adults. As an impartial advisor I can provide a more neutral point of view to the young adult, that ultimately leads to the happiness of the individual and those that love and support them.

 

I am also a firm believer in the philosophy "It's not only what you know but who you know".  My large network consists of people from all walks of life. I leverage this network and partnerships to help the student/early career individual get the best advice.  In many situations these connections lead to more opportunities for the individuals. 

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"Genuineness and honesty is what drives my mentorship style"

 

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