Centro Hosts WomenAdvancing for an Evening of Mentorship and Merlot – Raechel White, Centro

amp8220Our happiness is determined by the amount of personal investment made in our own growthamp8221 Centro Manifesto Guided by our core principles Centro invests in opportunities for employees to learn and grow Particularly passionate about this is Kelly Wenzel Centro CMO and the only female leader in Centroamp8217s Clevel of executives Kelly has lead the creation of a womenamp8217s mentoring group within Centroamp8217s walls and is actively involved in WomenAdvancing formerly WIMMI a womenamp8217s networking and mentorship group that was founded in 2011 On a snowy February evening Centro recently hosted the Chicago chapter of Women Advancing for a fireside chat on the importance of mentorship for women in the workplaceThe event opened as any proper event should with delicious wine and cheese After a half hour of mingling Kelly took the floor to introduce Colleen Whitney and Trish Chuipek both senior level women at OMD Chicago and speakers for the eveningamp8217s panel chat What followed was a warm discussion about mentorship and leadership with plenty of points worth sharingMentorship is Like KarmaThe best approach to mentorship is to treat it like you would any relationship and keep it perpetuating You might need many mentors and you might frequently need new ones but itamp8217s important to understand what your end goal is and figure out what you need before you can find people who can help you Is it a difficult relationship at work Maybe itamp8217s advice on being a mom or a personal challenge youamp8217re facing When you identify it the next step is to make an introduction Donamp8217t be afraid to reach out and ask for helpamp8220The trap that we fall into is askingamp8221 Colleen reminded us But donamp8217t forget to invest in your mentor too amp8220In my world this is known as Colleenamp8217s office hours but many people donamp8217t invest in the relationship with meamp8221 she explained amp8220Itamp8217s about a twoway investmentamp8221 Remember to take the time for your mentor as well and pay it forward Senior or novice we all have an opportunity for mentorship amp8220Everyone has something to learn and everyone has something to teachamp8221 Colleen notedBe Fearless in Unearthing Trish urged our attendees to keep a broader picture in mind while navigating their careers We are often told to be bold brave and courageous but Trish reminded us to be thoughtful without being calculating amp8220Take risks but donamp8217t be carelessamp8221 she said Unearth what you are best at and think about what you want to improve amp8220The broad skills you develop will transcend your roleamp8221 Trish continued amp8220And donamp8217t forget to develop a craftamp8221 Women should be encouraged to invest in what theyamp8217re doing so they can speak intelligently and deeply about their specialties Mentorship can play a role in developing a craft but women must also remember not to get lost in the advice amp8220We want to pull knowledge from others but donamp8217t forget yourselfamp8221 Trish advised amp8220Remember your core things Take what you learn and see how you best fit it because youamp8217re selling yourself and who you areamp8221You Donamp8217t Have to Burn your BraAttendees wanted to know How do I make my point when Iamp8217m the only woman at the table and Iamp8217m being talked over The best piece of advice Comfortable confidenceTrish urged attendees to be amazing at the job that they do and to pick their battles with confidence amp8220Donamp8217t be ballsy for the sake of being ballsyamp8221 but be confident and comfortable in the points that youamp8217re making she said Be persistent and get buyin before the meeting Take your idea to one person someone who knows your work and respects you and get them on your side Then ask them to help share your idea It might not work out but that person will always respect you for voicing your concernsKelly reminded us to not worry about what we canamp8217t influence amp8220Thereamp8217s a circle of concern and thereamp8217s a circle of influence that you can make a difference inamp8221 she noted amp8220Worry more about the circle of influence than about perceptionamp8221To learn more about WomenAdvancing or to get involved visit wwwwomenadvancingorg WomenAdvancing formerly Women in Media Mentoring Initiative was founded by Jack Myers in 2011 with the mission of connecting female professionals in the media marketing and advertising industries Today WomenAdvancing has connected over 6000 women across the country and has thriving chapters in New York Boston Austin Chicago Dallas Las Vegas Los Angeles and San Francisco Raechel White is a Content Marketing Specialist at Centro She is a DePaul graduate with an eyeball for lively and strategic content She has been at Centro for almost three years on both account management and marketing teams Native of the mitten she takes her chocolate dark her coffee strong and her vacations often Check us out on Facebook at MediaBizBloggerscomFollow our Twitter updates at MediaBizBloggerThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaBizBloggerscom management or associated bloggers MediaBizBloggers is an open thought leadership platform and readers may share their comments and opinions in response to all commentaries

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Centro Hosts WomenAdvancing for an Evening of Mentorship and Merlot – Raechel White, Centro

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Empowering Women in Media: Insights from Industry Leaders (Video) - By E.B. Moss

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Centro Hosts WomenAdvancing for an Evening of Mentorship and Merlot – Raechel White, Centro

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