This is my first time blogging, and I feel like maybe I won't do so great, but it's all a learning experience, right? I recently read a document about how I should act and how I should look when I meet my mentor for the first time. It's kind of a scary thought, I don't know anything about who I am mentoring with, I don't even know their name! But some of the points in the document stuck with me. For example, it said to smile when I meet my mentor. That makes sense! Of course I want to start on a good note so I would definitely have to smile! Another thing was to have a firm handshake. I've been told this many times but I feel like my handshakes always fall flat because I get so nervous. It would probably be a good idea to start practicing so that when I meet my mentor, they'll know that I am a confident individual and that they have nothing to worry about, I'll be the best student they'll ever have! The document said to talk about school and myself rather than friends and family. I don't think I would have originally thought of that, I always seem to talk about my family! But it does make sense that my mentor is going to want to get to know me, not necessarily my family!
Another part of my assignment was to listen to a podcast called Opportunity Knocks from Fox Buisness School. The podcast talked about how to approach your first job or, in my case, a mentorship. The woman said to dress appropriately and to seem professional at all times. I'm going to have to be sure to act professional because I will be a high school student working with older educated people in a hospital environment, I don't want to be looked down on! Although she had a lot of good points, I think the one thing that really stuck with me is that she said to "talk 20% and listen 80%." I thought that she had a very good point! I know how easy it is to get carried away and start adding your own opinion to things, but when you are taking part in a learning opportunity as great as Honors Mentorship, you want to get everything you can from it. I feel honored to have this chance and I know that by listening to my mentor and soaking in everything he/she has to teach me, I can get a great experience out of this!
