In this blog, 2020 mentor Mariana (Street Circus Co-ordinator at the Roundhouse) shares her experience with her mentee, Farah* (not her real name) as they approach the programme’s halfway point.
“We’ve reached the halfway point on the Routes mentoring programme and already it‘s been an inspiring and important journey. Meetings with my mentee are a weekly highlight and it’s a connection I value all the more given the distancing and uncertainty of recent times.
Joining the programme
I decided to apply for the programme after holding a workplace lunch and learn session led by Routes and attending a performance by Routes project participants of I Am Alive – The Power of Women. Routes does incredible work and I was excited to hear about how I could get involved with the mentoring scheme.
As it would be my first mentoring experience, I was initially unsure of what to expect from our meetings. Adding to this, the situation with COVID-19 meant that the mentoring training delivered by Routes and meetings with my mentee Farah would all be via digital platforms. As it turns out, video meetings have worked surprisingly well, and we’ve still been able to meet regularly and make progress on Farah’s goals – though we do of course look forward to being able to one day meet in person.
The training for mentors was useful and included practical exercises that I’ve since used in meetings with my mentee and will carry forward, particularly around identifying and setting goals. Overall there is a lot of support available throughout the programme: the Routes team and other mentors in the cohort have been great at sharing tips and resources, such as TED talks and exercises, and helping with questions that come up along the way.
The highlights so far
Farah and I hit it off straight away, and this seems to have been the experience of many other mentors/mentees on the programme. We both have arts backgrounds and are passionate about the potential for creative projects to bring positive change. It’s been a highlight having our interests and experience matched so well and I really look forward to our chats each week. I’ve definitely found Farah’s creativity, adventurous spirit and compassion for others inspiring. It’s been great to learn from each other, navigate new challenges and celebrate successes together along the way.
So far, our meetings have focused on Farah’s goals as she writes her next film proposal. I’ve worked with her on building a database of online resources for funding, networking and skills development. We’ve also had good experiences of looking into translation and how to remove barriers around this. This is important for Farah’s work as a writer and more widely in making opportunities more accessible. A highlight so far has been working together on a successful application for funding to be used towards a translator. We’ve also been working with online translation tools to translate websites and application forms which quickly gave us greater freedom to access more routes for working towards Farah’s goals.
Looking ahead
I’m really glad to be a Routes mentor. So far the programme has offered the professional and personal development I hoped for and the opportunity to forge a valued connection with Farah. I would encourage anyone considering applying for the next cohort to do so – it’s a great experience and we need more programmes like these that support and empower women to achieve goals and build connections. “
