All it takes for people to drop by the wayside are a couple of negative datapoints. My mom went into medicine…following in the footsteps of her mother who shattered glass ceilings by being among the very first women to graduate from medical school in #India. However my mother wanted to be a surgeon and she was told by her advisor that patients wouldn’t be comfortable with her as their surgeon since she didn’t look or sound like a surgeon. My mom stayed in medicine and had a great career as a family #doctor… But she would have been a world-class surgeon. I had a high school guidance counsellor tell me that I wouldn’t make it at a 4-year college. When people are told at an early age they’re not good at something…or they can’t do something…they often give up. How can we eliminate negative datapoints that cause young people to drop by the wayside? Be a #mentor. Being a mentor means lighting a path and showing someone the way to follow it. Confident people change the world…and we can give new people the confidence they need through mentorship. But mentorship is more than just grabbing a cup of coffee with someone a few times a year. Mentorship takes time and attention. It means giving tough love when necessary. Never underestimate the power of someone believing in you…someone erasing those negative data points by replacing them with positive ones.
Thank you for sharing your stories !! Very freeing . I attended a small college in the Shenandoah Valley region and my guidance counselor told me I wasn’t cut for med school and should drop my pre-med path immediately! I chose to prove him wrong and signed up, actually became a proctor/tutor for the students he advised to join the program and graduated with flying colors!! The people that try to silence your abilities improve the trajectory of your path in life !ll kill the noise when they tell you what you can’t do .
Allen Geller
2w
As an unabashed Girl Dad...teaching daughters that they can do anything they want and offering them support in both their successes and failures is critical for them become successful women...which leads to more successful women.
Nice
Beautiful post and well said
Sometimes we don’t even need for someone to give us a disapproving comment outright because we are surrounded with messages that we don’t belong. This happens by walking into a classroom, an office, or a conference where nobody looks like us. Representation, just like mentorship, is powerful. I’m thankful for outspoken leaders like you.
Shikha Bajaj
2w
Love this Saira! #mentorshipmatters and one mentoring relationship changes many lives. Not only does it impact the people (mentor and mentee) but everyone around them at workplace, in family and community. We rise by lifting others! It seems like a small ripple with far reaching impact. #ownyourcolor #seekamentor #becomeamentor #womenleadership
It's crazy how some outdated ideas can derail dreams. Agree on the mentorship part - it’s like being someone’s personal cheerleader 📣. But yeah, it’s about those heart-to-heart chats too, where you get real about the tough stuff.
Ali Goedecke
2w
There’s a difference between tough love and inordinate criticism or cruelty. Unfortunately, many people who are charged with the care of others (at all ages, across all industries and walks of life) don’t know the difference. Great that your mom didn’t let the latter stop her, as many become completely discouraged. Powerful words and wisdom for shaping the world towards what “could be”!
Chief Investment Officer at Nuveen, a TIAA company
2w🙋🏽♀️ Follow Saira Malik for more insights on careers and the stock market! Subscribe to my weekly market commentary here: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/nuveen-cio-views-6896497746811981825