The beauty of mentorship: having someone focused on your growth

The EO Mentorship Program runs for 12 months where mentors and mentees have regular monthly catch-ups, which usually last for only an hour or more. But for mentees like Jeni Clift, Owner and Co-founder of Otto, those regular conversations with her mentor, Anthony Closter, Director at Urban Land Developments, were precious to her. 

Jeni Clift enjoys being a mentee as it provides her with the opportunity to learn from someone who is focused on her growth.

“For me, I think the real value is in taking a couple of hours out every month and sitting down with somebody who is completely focused on me,” Jeni remarked.  “I didn’t always have specific questions or know what I needed coming to our meetings but Anthony was great at picking up on something in my month’s update and leading the conversation,” she said. Jeni understood how important it is to have someone focused on her entrepreneurial journey because she, too, has been coaching other business owners and executives as an EOS Implementor.

“I’m usually the mentor. But, yeah, I decided to throw my name in the hat to become a mentee and to be on the other side of the table for a change, to be learning from somebody else and having somebody available to reach out to when I had questions or just didn't quite know what to do,” she explained.

As a mentor, Anthony Closter appreciates that the program has given him the structure to actually help and provide some mentorship.

Anthony admits that the prospect of mentoring someone who’s been doing it herself is quite intimidating. “I was a little bit intimidated by the prospect of trying to help or mentor somebody who generally mentors other people. We first caught up with the training with Carlo and it was a little bit daunting at the time because obviously, as Jeni’s already mentioned, she trains people so she's a business/life coach in her business life.”

Although it was their first time to meet during the Mentorship Program training day, they instantly bonded well as a mentor and a mentee because they share a few common things. Jeni calls it “intimacy” (instant intimacy through EO’s confidentiality) – a term that is often used in EO – because Anthony is an ex-EOer himself. 

It is for this same reason that Anthony agreed to become a mentor for this program. “I was a member of EO from 2006 to probably 2016 – for about 10 years. I got a lot out of EO and loved it and loved the way they went about it and the benefits of being a member. So, when I was asked by James Murray to be a mentor, I thought I’d jump at the opportunity and, hopefully, get to meet some more people and also give a little bit back to EO for everything that I took out of it over the 10 years.”

Apart from that, they also share other commonalities, which is why Jeni found it easy to have that trust with Anthony as her mentor. “Anthony's background appealed to me. He is regional-based, I’m in Geelong, but I’d lived in country Victoria for 20 years. He'd had some big businesses, such as in hospitality, with lots of staff. I wanted to learn from his experience managing lots of staff, as we were growing towards a bigger business,” Jeni shared.

Jeni appreciates that she could reach out to someone when she’s got concerns with her business. She recalls, “I’ve just been through some “stuff” in one of my businesses and just rang Anthony and said, ‘Hey, have you got a minute?’ He said to me at the end of the call, “Ring me every week”. I did that until things started to settle down. Having somebody that you know is on your side, that you can reach out to, knowing that those conversations are confidential and just having somebody that can give you a whole different perspective, is valuable. He's bought and sold different businesses and exited businesses so I trusted his insight.”

She adds, “It’s having somebody on your side where there's no expectation of anything in return. There are some people when you ring them and you know that they're going to expect something in return. I know that I can ring Anthony, ask him a question, he'll give me an answer and I know that he's on my side.”

Another thing Jeni values in mentorship is learning new insights from Anthony. “I don't know anything about hospitality or land development, but some of his experiences have really triggered ideas in me that I can go and put into action,” she explained. Anthony’s knowledge about connections and tapping into what he’s done before to expand his network helped Jeni to think of various ways to grow her consulting business, the EOS business, which is still in startup mode.

But it’s not just Jeni who’s learning from their regular catch-ups. Anthony has also picked a lot of ideas from Jeni as well, especially with her work on EOS. Other than business learnings, they also get to talk about life and family. For Anthony, the beauty of the EO Mentorship Program is it's being structured. “This is the first proper structured mentor process that I’ve been through and so far, it's been really good. It's a great experience. I love catching up monthly and talking about things that we’re going through. Sometimes, there are specific issues we've got to talk about and sometimes, it's just a general chit chat about what's going on in our lives.”

He added, “It has been something that has given us some structure to actually help and provide some mentorship. Hopefully, Jeni is finding that she's getting something out of it because it is a really difficult time that Jeni's in a startup and it's really hard to start a business when you've been locked down for 240 days or whatever has been. It's really tough, so I think all credit to Jeni for doing what she's doing and forging through with her business.”

Anthony has imparted encouraging words that still ring in Jeni’s mind. She recalls, “A few things that Anthony said to me through the course of our conversation that I’ve now got in the back of my mind that keeps popping up to remind me, which is to stay positive and to just keep an eye on my business and make sure that that’s still okay.”

This is what makes Jeni appreciate her mentorship journey even more, which is having a mentor who looks after her welfare as an entrepreneur. “When do you get having somebody sitting there for two hours and they're just completely for you in that time frame? But to me, that's the biggest value – the thought process that I go into before our meeting and then all I take out of that meeting to put into action over the next couple of weeks.”

Like Jeni, many EO Melbourne members are also reaping the benefits of the Mentorship Program. Recognising its value to the members, another intake is about to take place this March 2022. EO Melbourne members who are interested to be part of the program are welcome to apply at https://www.eomelbourne.org/mentorship. 

Using LinkedIn to promote your business

LinkedIn is a social media platform that has been used by individuals, companies, and organisations to connect, network, and promote their products, services, causes, and brands. Entrepreneurs have also recognised the value of LinkedIn to their business, and EO Members share with us how they utilise LinkedIn to promote their brands and organisations and take advantage of the platform’s network.

Create brand awareness

As more and more professionals connect on LinkedIn, it becomes an effective venue to push for brand recognition. Although most users tend to use it for business purposes, it doesn’t mean one cannot get creative and playful on this platform. Let your brand’s personality shine and inject a bit of fun to make your posts stand out.

“I use LinkedIn for business to create brand awareness and get known in my field. It is mostly for PR purposes. To be honest, I treat it more like Facebook and do not take it too seriously as some of the comments I leave are more for fun than serious engagement. LinkedIn can be a bit dry sometimes, so why not spice it up,” quipped Alex Louey, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Appscore.

Attract new prospects

Raising awareness for your brand can help generate prospective customers and new clients for you. If you use LinkedIn well by regularly expanding your network and posting quality content, you will be able to attract a potential market for your business.

“We use our LinkedIn to re-purpose awesome content that will help us attract new prospects to our community and world that, in turn, will hopefully see our brand as a source to learn from,” said Nathan Chan, CEO and Publisher of Foundr Magazine.

Promote one’s products and services

While you’re at it, go beyond your regular posts. Talk about your products and services so that readers become more familiar with what you do and what you can offer. Your content doesn’t have to be a hard sell as you can subtly present your offerings that can pique the interest of your readers. 

“We use it to post and share videos that we have produced for our clients. It's a great way to showcase what we do on a mass scale. And every month, we always win new clients that say they found us through the videos that we share,” Anthony Lam, Managing Director of Punchy Digital Media, claimed.

Tell a story

LinkedIn is a platform for professionals, but remember that they are also individuals whom you can inspire and motivate. The users can also relate to your experiences, so use the platform to reach out to them through your stories.

“LinkedIn has been my go-to marketing platform to tell an authentic story without spamming people’s inboxes. During COVID, when we had no budget for marketing but still needed to tell the story to the world, we used LinkedIn to showcase and as a case study of what we were doing. The result from this was a 75% increase in new customers. Being able to connect with people at a one-on-one level was important to me. Few important things on LinkedIn -- personal profiles and personal articles get better traction than company updates,” Arosh Fernando, Founder and Director of WooHah Productions, shared.

Build credibility and authority

There is power in your LinkedIn profile and posts. Whatever you put out there can make or break your image. Make LinkedIn work for your advantage by sharing things that can build your portfolio. Share your wins, give and ask for recommendations, engage with people in your network, update your profile, and be consistent in your messaging.

“I use LinkedIn in building credibility and as a way of being seen. I try and post an article weekly that is in alignment with how I want to be recognised, which is as an authority on People,” remarked Jeni Clift, Director/General Manager of DWM Solutions and a Professional EOS Implementer.

If you have some great experiences on how LinkedIn has helped you in your business, share them with us through the comments section below.

Check out the EO Melbourne LinkedIn page at https://www.linkedin.com/company/eo-melbourne.

EO Melbourne Members who were recognised in 2020 for their outstanding achievements

The year 2020 is perhaps one of the most challenging times due to the current global crisis that everyone is experiencing. Yet, amidst the sullenness that the pandemic may have brought upon us, some shine bright, inspiring and encouraging us to keep on and face the difficulties with optimism and determination.

Among them are entrepreneurs and companies that have been recognised by various institutions and organisations in their respective industries for the hard work and brilliance they have shown through their businesses.

2020 SmartCompany Resilience Awards

Since its inception in 2007, SmartCompany has been paying tribute to the fastest-growing SMEs in the country through its Smart50 Awards. While it took a break in 2019 and was bound to come back this year, present circumstances have stirred it to change tracks and recognise companies that have exhibited the knack for problem-solving, flexibility and rebounding from disappointments. Thus, the first-ever SmartCompany Resilience Awards was conceived.

There are four categories: Adaptation, Community, People and Agility. Five businesses were shortlisted per category and one of them was announced as the winners by a panel of judges. Work Health Australia, founded and owned by Dr James L Murray, bagged the top position in the People category “for its focus on keeping its team connected and productive during Victoria’s multiple lockdowns.”

Other shortlisted businesses by EO Melbourne Members are Arosh Fernando’s Woohah Productions and Mark Calabro’s HungryHungry under the Adaptation category.

TEMI’s 2020 Australasian Mobile Workforce Awards

The Employee Mobility Institute (TEMI) introduced the Australasian Mobile Workforce Awards in 2019 to give merit to those who excel in the talent mobility industry, ranging from talent management to HR, employee engagement, remuneration, taxation, relocation, mobility, immigration, diversity and inclusion, corporate travel or housing, and other disciplines related to this field.

The Award Program acknowledged individuals, teams and initiatives in the industry at a local and regional level. Twelve awardees were honoured in this program; three winners each for the Leadership Excellence Awards, Business Advancement Award, and Employee Engagement Awards; and one awardee each for the Employee Mobility Champion of the year: Highly Commended Award, 2020 GMP1 Outstanding Achievement Award, and 2020 GMP1 Highly Commended Award.

Jamie Lingham, Global Immigration Lead of Absolute Immigration, is hailed as one of the Employee Engagement Awards Winners. “Receiving The Employee Mobility Institute’s award for Wellbeing Initiative of the Year for 2020 was a huge honour, especially given the impact COVID has had on the mobility and immigration industry. With passenger arrivals to Australia down by 99%, our objective was to keep the team engaged and employed while retaining the investment and corporate memory of the business. We know that the investment made in employee wellbeing will pay dividends into 2021 and beyond!” he said.

ARN Women in ICT Awards 2020

The Women in ICT Awards (WIICTA) was launched in 2012 to honour the accomplishments of female innovators and leaders who have played notable roles in the local ICT industry.

This year, over 110 individuals were included in the final shortlist in the following categories: Entrepreneur, Rising Star, Shining Star, Community, Technical and Achievement. Under the Shining Star – Partner category, Jeni Clift of DWM Solutions is among the finalists. The Shining Star awards are candidates that have eight or more years of experience in the ICT industry and have significant feats in a flourishing profession, as shown through milestones and successful projects.

“I was thrilled to be recognised within my industry as a Finalist in the category SHINING STAR – PARTNER of ARN’s Women In ICT Awards. I am familiar with the calibre of women who work in this industry and am honoured to be included amongst leaders who are making a difference!” Jeni expressed.

Ragtrader’s The Power 30

Every year, Ragtrader, a publication that comes up with news, features, analysis and opinion on Australia’s clothing, footwear and accessories sector, celebrates people in the industry that have innovated and created a remarkable impact in eCommerce, retail and design.

This year, among the influential fashion traders that made it to the Power 30 list is Lee Munro of Munro Footwear Group. Its productive partnership with suppliers, especially with the challenges that 2020 has brought, has helped them overcome obstacles in inventory.

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Congratulations to all business leaders who have been recognised this year and cheers to all entrepreneurs that have braved the proverbial storms and painstakingly led their teams through the crisis. You all deserved a pat on the back for all your efforts to navigate through the current situation.