One of my favorite parts about LAS is that as an incoming freshman, you receive a mentor from the class above you to help and guide you as you try to navigate your first year of college and as part of LAS. After being accepted into LAS, I was so eager and excited to find out who my mentor was. I was thrilled to find out that my mentor is Anya Turner. Even though we were able to meet each other before the retreat, I was happy to be able to get to know her and her passion a little more through and during the mentor/mentee retreat.
At the beginning of every school year, the Leadership Institute organizes a mentor/mentee retreat so that mentors and mentees are given the opportunity to get to know and grow with each other. Although the retreat took place online through WebEx this year, it was still very well thought out and the Leadership Institute tried to make it the best it could be. The retreat lasted four hours. We first started briefly as a large group for a welcome. For the next bit of time, each cohort split from the other so that the mentors and mentees could each learn a little bit more about their specific roles.
Prior to the retreat, everyone was required to take the Clifton Strengths Test to find our greatest five strengths. I think this strength finder evaluation is a very good and accurate assessment. When we all came back from our mentor and mentee breakout rooms, we began talking about our strengths and how each strength makes us who we are, how we can apply them to our lives, and how to work with others using our strengths. My top five strengths are harmony, relator, includer, positivity, and discipline. I think that knowing how we use our strengths in our lives helps us to better understand how we operate. I also think that being able to see how other people’s strengths make them who they are is important too.
To round out the retreat, each person made their own personalized vision board using an online platform and then shared with their mentor or mentee. The purpose of the vision board is to have a physical representation of your goals. You could make a vision board for this school year or one that extends further into your future. I think this activity was beyond helpful for me! I loved being able to create something that displays my goals and that I am able to be reminded of everyday. I also think it was very beneficial to be able to share this with Anya, as we were able to better understand what each other’s goals are and how we can help each other achieve them.
After the retreat, Anya and I met up to discuss our take aways from the retreat. Going forward, I am continuing to support Anya in every possible way so that she will succeed, and she is doing the exact same for me! As this school year continues to progress, I regularly am reminded of my vision board and my strengths. I am learning more and more everyday on how I can use my strengths to better myself and others. Further in the future, as I look into next year when I will have my own mentee, I will strive to be as helpful and awesome to them as Anya is to me.
Samantha McDonald 