Review TechWomen program information regarding coronavirus (COVID-19).

TechWomenTechWomen

TechWomen is an Initiative of the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs

  • Home
  • Program
    • Overview
    • 2022 Action Plans
    • Professional Development
    • Cultural Exchange
    • Delegation Trips
    • Impact
    • TechWomen Covid-19 Program Information
  • Participants
    • Eligibility and Application
    • The Experience
    • Award Details
    • 2022 Emerging Leader Profiles
  • Mentors
    • Why Mentor With TechWomen?
    • Professional Mentor Overview
    • Cultural Mentor Overview
    • Impact Coach Overview
    • TechWomen Mentor Application
  • Get Involved
    • Host an Emerging Leader
    • Host an Event
    • Other Ways to Get Involved
    • Host companies and partners
  • About Us
    • Who We Are
    • Our Team
    • Program Countries
    • Connect
  • FAQ
    • General
    • Participants
    • Mentors
  • Blog
  • Log In

Mentorship: What I thought versus what I saw

April 20, 2021 By TechWomen Leave a Comment

Guest post by Anna Gowera, 2020-2021 fellow of Zimbabwe

Cheesy. That is how I used to imagine mentorship to be, back in the day. After all, I was young and robust (and deathly timid!), so why would I want someone lording it over me with their ideas and requests for accountability, right? WRONG!  Nothing could have been further from the truth! And I’ve never been happier to be proven wrong than in my experiences with TechWomen.

My mentorship experience with Laura Cutrona is one I’ll cherish, and frequently refer to when I become a mentor too. I was very nervous before we met because the comfort of the Action Planning group was being removed; the spotlight would be on me. True to my frequently overthinking self, I prepared a whole shopping list of expectations, in case she asked what I’d like us to cover in our month together. Which she did. She was unfazed, though, as if she’d seen me prepare my crazy list and calmly (and to my surprise) distilled the one million things I said in our first meeting into five themes: project management, networking, people management, curriculum development and self-discovery. We did cover all five themes in our month together, miraculously. I especially enjoyed the self-discovery and motivational assessment exercises as they helped me understand myself better, and expand my worldview.

Armed with information about the different personalities and workplace motivations that people have, I feel better able to navigate my profession, and let the leader in me truly emerge. Overall, the main focus of my mentorship experience was on project management — everything else ties back to this broad theme. Also, it turns out that there was no need for me to be nervous; the TechWomen team paired us perfectly, and Laura and I clicked from the get-go. We even both coincidentally wore blue button-down shirts to our first meeting!

I heard somewhere that, “A mentor teaches how to think, not what to think.” I can vouch for the truth of this statement, as a frequent question Laura would ask is, “Would there be any value in…” or, “Is it helpful to…”, and help me see the bigger picture. The take-home lesson from my mentorship experience is that I ought to believe in myself; there’s an army of people believing in me! I am brilliant and have ideas worth implementing (Laura’s words). By being connected to amazing people in Laura’s fold, I effectively experienced a mind shift from the notion that knowledge must be kept as cards close to one’s chest, to the impact and value of networking. I will be, and indeed have started, actively seeking ways to make connections for people, for their own progress’ sake. You may have heard that women hate other women, but in TechWomen the narrative is,” Don’t trip the prom queen.” Untold beauty emerges in a space where women support one another. Thank you Laura, thank you TechWomen — I would wish this on everybody!

 

Anna Gowera is an Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) practitioner who is currently a Lecturer and acting Quality Assurance Officer at the Zimbabwe School of Mines. Anna teaches courses on environmental impact assessment, environmental education, environmental management and occupational safety and health to students and professionals in mining and allied fields. She has worked in diverse settings, including manufacturing, construction and power generation and supply. Anna is studying towards a Master’s Degree in Environmental Science at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. 

 

 ​

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Email

Filed Under: 2020 Program, Cultural Exchange, IIE, Impact, Mentorship, Professional Development, STEM, Sub-Saharan Africa

Speak Your Mind Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 893 other subscribers

Recent Posts

  • 10 Years Later: A Letter to TechWomen
  • TechWomen Pitch Day: A Room Full of Ideas
  • Why is the TechWomen fellowship a remarkable experience?
  • Fellow Lindiwe Matlali is on a Mission to Help Youths Innovate Themselves out of Poverty
  • Weeks Four and Five: Final 10 days of TechWomen Fall 2022 Conclude with Historic Events and Expansion Announcements

Categories

  • 2012 Program
  • 2013 Program
  • 2014 Program
  • 2015 Program
  • 2016 Program
  • 2017 Program
  • 2018 Program
  • 2019 Program
  • 2020 Program
  • 2022 (Fall) Program
  • 2022 program
  • Alumnae
  • Announcements
  • Application Tips
  • Central Asia
  • Conferences
  • Cultural Exchange
  • Delegation Trips
  • Emerging Leader Voices
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Girls Education
  • IIE
  • Impact
  • Lean In
  • Mentor Application
  • Mentoring Girls
  • Mentorship
  • Middle East and North Africa
  • Partnerships
  • Professional Development
  • Scholarship
  • Seed Grant
  • Solar Power
  • STEM
  • Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Technology
  • Uncategorized
  • Washington, D.C.

Archives

  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011

Tags

2013 program 2014 program 2015 program Africa Algeria Alumnae application careers central asia Community cultural exchange Cultural Mentor delegation trips Education Egypt emerging leaders emerging women leaders Empowerment Entrepreneurship guest post impact Jordan kazakhstan Leadership MENA Mentees Mentor Mentors mentorship Middle East Morocco nigeria Rwanda San Francisco Silicon Valley State Department STEM technology TechWomen TechWomen Alumni Tunisia U.S. Department of State Women women in tech womenintech

Blogroll

  • DipNote
  • E-Mediat
  • Fulbright mtvU Fellows
  • Fulbright Student Program
  • Gilman Program
  • Ibrahim Leadership and Dialogue Project Blog
  • IIE Opening Minds
  • Parallel Earth
  • TechGirls
  • Women’s Enterprise for Sustainability

CONTACT US | MEDIA | Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions | Sitemap
Copyright © 2023 TechWomen | Site by MIGHTYminnow

   

Copyright © 2023 · TechWomen on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

 

Loading Comments...