My last blog I mentioned how an opportunity was presented to me at a difficult time, and this opportunity lead me to where I am today. That was just the beginning of a long line of opportunities and mentors that I never discounted no matter how small or big. I have been lucky to have many people in my career that have pushed me to do better, look twice and even turn my head the other way. When I take a mental snap shot of the pinnacle moments in my career there are a few mentors that stand out.
First would be Sue who hired me at Challenger. I was young and naïve, she gave me words of wisdom during these early days, often pulling me into her office to speak candidly. If not for these conversations I am sure my days would have been short lived in trucking…I had to toughen up, I had to dot my I’s and cross my T’s, and mostly I had to look at trucking with an open mind. She pushed me and she watched out for me, not once did she let me fall.
The second mentor that comes to mind, and I am not sure if mentor would be the right definition. She was tough, she didn’t stand for any errors, she was out to WIN, and sometimes at any cost. I learned from her determination and that there is in fact a solution to every problem. She also demonstrated to me if you have a goal, don’t stop trying to achieve it. While these lessons were often learned in a negative way as more than once I was walked over, mislead, hurt and targeted. It was her that unknowingly planted the seed in me to be my own boss, I was not going to stand to be taken advantage of nor was I ever going to treat anyone the way she did. Looking back I am grateful to have had her have such an impact on my life.
Most recently, after a rocky start working with CYBF/Futurpreneur Canada to establish a mentor relationship to fulfill program obligations I have been matched with SBCN’s very own social sweetheart. I have just passed my one year anniversary of being my own boss (thank you mentor number 2!), and have been building a relationship with Linda for the past 10 months. Linda has shared with me her natural skills of networking, (as this is a weakness of mine) she has encouraged me to get out there and be seen and heard. So here I am following the guidance of yet another mentor, and blogging. Sometimes it is hard to follow the suggestions of others when the suggestion is one that is unnatural by nature, but these are often the changes we need to get to the next level. Although I have mentioned 3 mentors in this blog, there have been countless people that have had influence on me, some for years, some for just a day but all have had an impact. Looking into the future, I am going to strive to pass along the privilege of having mentors onto others, even if it is un knowingly.
Rena Hawkins,CCLP
www.h-fourlogistics.com
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