May 23, 2022
With Dr. Lisa Wicker, HR Career Strategist, Author, and Mentor
Do you ever wish that when you first began your career you had a trusted ally to advise you? Wouldn’t it be great if you could simply follow in someone else’s footsteps and learn from their experience? We all make mistakes. That’s only natural and to be expected. But if this person were there to guide you early on, how many stumbling blocks or mistakes could you have avoided? That’s what a mentor can provide, a one-on-one relationship where their expertise, knowledge, and experience can help you successfully navigate challenges and develop your skills. But a strong mentor relationship is more than just a shortcut to career success. A good mentor will help set goals, maintain accountability, and provide concrete feedback to guide us.
My guest today, Dr. Lisa Wicker, is a Human Resources career strategist, author, and mentor. Voted one of the most successful businesswomen in Detroit by The Detroit News, Lisa’s passion is helping other women overcome their biggest challenges and achieve their dreams. Using her own life experiences, along with the personal strategies she’s developed for long-term success, Lisa shares why a mentoring relationship might be the key to achieving your own success and, perhaps, how to find a mentor of your very own.
What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
- How did Lisa get started on this career path?
- Why helping other women achieve their dreams has become such a passion for Lisa.
- Was it difficult for Lisa being a woman of color in the automotive industry in the ’80s?
- Who were Lisa’s mentors and what did they teach her?
- Why is having a mentor so important?
- How can someone find a mentor?
- How can being a mentor to someone else help in your own career?
- What are the keys to a successful mentor relationship?
- Why is networking such an important skill and where do you start?
- Lisa shares a success story from one of her clients.
- What does Lisa mean by, “Your purse is not your worth, but human capital is golden”?
- What is the one piece of advice you would give to anyone struggling in their career?
- More about Lisa’s magazine Career Mastered.
Today’s Takeaway: While it may appear that a mentor relationship is one-sided with the mentor providing the mentee with all of the benefits, a true mentor relationship is a two-way street where both individuals can benefit. For example, a younger mentee may provide technical expertise by demonstrating how to navigate social media or teach a new computer software program. A successful mentor relationship is also a great addition to any resume. Showing that you are skilled at mentoring your fellow employees and helping others develop professionally may help advance your own leadership role within your company. At the end of the day, by providing your mentee with the skills they need to succeed, you are serving the greater needs of the company and a well-trained workforce is a win-win situation all the way around. Remember every day is a gift and the gift that we get from building a close and trusting mentor relationship will reap rewards for years to come. Whether we are mentors or mentees, we can learn from each other throughout our careers and our journey in life. The friendship and invaluable experience we share can only help us mature professionally and personally. Perhaps, best of all, our mentee can pay these dividends forward by mentoring the next generation as they follow in our footsteps. I’m Florine Mark and that’s “Today’s Takeaway.”
Quotes:
- “I had to learn real quickly that my education wasn’t going to get me there. I had to learn how to have relationships with people and particularly women.” — Lisa
- “I have this vision that I can help advance women’s leadership; I think we all have to do our part.” — Lisa
- “Attitude + Aptitude = Altitude.” — Lisa
- “We can’t do all of what we want to do without support from a guidance, a trusted confidant.” — Lisa
- “Mentors are there to be truthful, to be a guide, and to be a counselor to help you along the path of where you want to get to.” — Lisa
- “You have to look at; what do you want in a mentor from a trust standpoint? What do you want in a mentor from an experience standpoint? What do you want in a mentor from a role-model standpoint?” — Lisa
- “I’ve learned so much from my mentees.” — Lisa
- “Mentorship allows me to hone my own leadership skills.” — Lisa
- “I think a mentoring relationship is one of reciprocity.” — Lisa
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