A minute with a Twenty/Twenty mentee

Why did you decide to participate in Twenty/Twenty?

JK: “I was at a stage in my business where I wanted to grow it, but I needed to grow myself first. Having just come from working as a designer in an agency, to running my own with a small team, I had no previous leadership experience so wanted to build on this so I could lead and mentor my own team, and push the business forward with conviction and confidence. I believed that Twenty/Twenty was what I needed. The programme was also recommended to me by several professional connections.”

How would you sum up your mentoring match?

JK: “My mentor was Studio Phoenix’s co-founder, Jonny Westcar and he was a very good match. We connected on both a professional and personal level. He had been through similar experiences in the past so was able to relate easily to my challenges. We met in person for most of the sessions, either in London (near him) or Edinburgh (near me), and he mentioned that he also got a lot of benefits from the sessions too.”

And what about the mentoring experience?

JK: “Everything I listed at the start that I wanted to achieve and gain clarity on, has been answered. Also the matching process itself has exceeded my expectations. Working with Jonny, specifically, has been a real pleasure and I look forward to every session. I don’t think you could have picked a better match for my needs and personality.”

How have you benefited?

JK: “I have benefitted from it hugely, because I set out to achieve certain things and gain clarity, understanding and confidence in my path and vision, and it has also been beneficial for someone to relate to my specific rollercoaster and therefore use as a sounding board.

My business has benefitted because I have benefitted, and a lot of the clarity in leadership and vision has passed to my team in a positive way.

As a business owner with vision, goals and struggles, the value of being able to learn from, and bounce ideas off someone who has already walked a similar path can only be beneficial.”

Any advice for future mentees?

JK: “Investing in yourself is one of the most effective things you can do. Be organised and have a clear agenda with incremental goals, then open yourself up to the honesty, guidance, support and industry specific knowledge of the mentors. I will definitely be taking part in Twenty/Twenty mentoring again at some stage.”