Over the last four years, I've been working closely with Career Ready, as a mentor and delivering some skills workshops. A personal driver of mine for almost twenty years has been broadening access to the professions. I've often felt that barriers to doing well in an interview can be a lack of confidence or not knowing how the process really works. So, I am glad to use Kaplan's volunteering time and my own time to help young students in challenging areas to build their confidence to walk into an interview, shake someone's hand, look them in the eye and be ready to answer, and ask, questions in an interview. These 'employability' skills often aren't taught in schools, so I am impressed by the drive of Career Ready to organise professionals to give back by helping out in this way.
It's genuinely rewarding to watch my mentees' confidence slowly grow and then soar over the course of the mentoring months. Last year, I bumped into one of my former mentees at an Association of Apprentices event where I was speaking. The first day I met her, she was super shy and found it tough to be in a conversation. So, I kept it pretty low key and we just chatted about crisps and whether pickled onion Space Raiders were better than Monster Munch. Month by month her confidence grew to being able to state an elevator pitch and answer mock-interview questions. By the end of the year, she'd developed so much due to her dedication and after a few practice runs, she'd got the apprenticeship she wanted. When I met her again in December, one year later, she walked into a big function room with total ease, confidence and happiness. Without doubt, that was the highlight of my working year.