“She Says” with Alexandra Heiden

A mentor is often defined as an advisor, confidant, role model, tutor, and coach. And Alexandra Heiden is all of that and more. Equipped with a lifetime of experience and a natural-born gift, Alexandra’s passion stems from her late mother who recognized this strength early on and nurtured it, reminding her that serving others was just “in her.” Alexandra’s mentoring style can be described as assertive, confident, and extroverted and has led to her assisting colleagues with excelling in their careers, offering her talents to friends when setting out to start their own business, and being a go-to person for new bankers who are starting their careers with BMO Today, Alexandra chooses to continue honoring her mother’s legacy by giving from the heart and exuding positivity to all who are in search of it.

In this month’s “She Says,” Alexandra Heiden talks with us about her passion for mentoring, her legacy, and how she encourages others to show up for themselves.

Tell me about yourself.

I feel like I come from a pretty solid background. My parents and I relocated here from Miami right before I started high school. After graduating, I attended a community college and later received my degree in psychology from Lewis University.

My mom was into mentoring and empowering women, which led her, along with my dad, to become a pastor. And I feel like that’s why I went into psychology. I’ve always been someone who likes to help―whether it’s friends or colleagues―with their personal and professional growth.

Throughout my professional career, I’ve been in customer service and customer-facing sales. I’ve worked in insurance, for Chiropractic World, and Optometrist World, and helped some friends with opening their boutique gyms around the city. All of which led me to BMO. I started there over a year ago because I was looking for something a little more career-driven where I could stay for a while. Since being there, they’ve put me on a mentor training track. So, I’ll be mentoring new bankers for two weeks of their five-week training, and I’ll be their go-to person. I remember being mentored when I started at BMO, and my mentor was really someone I could, and still do, heavily rely on. If there’s ever anything that I need, whether in or outside of work, she’s always there. So, that’s something I’m very passionate about.

I feel that mentoring is something my mom left as part of her legacy to me. Just making sure that I’m always there being supportive, empowering people, and helping them as best as I can along with my personal growth.

Can you tell me a little bit more about your love and passion for mentorship and the groups you typically mentor?

It’s kind of an odd thing. My mom has always said that it was just in me. Since I was a kid, she saw how people were comfortable opening up to me. From my younger siblings to my friends to my colleagues, both past and present. And since being at BMO, my branch manager would notice how people were drawn to me. Customers would come in to talk about their accounts, and within an hour they would be telling me their entire life story. My mom said it was one of my gifts.

I have a coworker who I coached through her next steps with BMO. She asked if banking would be a good role for her and I was able to help her get promoted from being a teller to a now successful banker. We talk almost every day, and she always says how my helping her got her to where she’s at.

It’s just nice being able to mentor and touch people, regardless of age. In my friend groups, I’m one of the oldest, but I like that we all feed off one another and that we’re all trying to grow and learn in different ways. The biggest thing I’ve learned this year is the constant desire to change and to embrace it. In my role, there’s always something new that comes up, always a new obstacle. And so, I just try to grow from that.

At Women Employed (WE), we are all about smashing the status quo. Would you say that your passion and your love for mentorship is your way of helping to smash the status quo for women and the people you’re connected to?

Yes. It’s important to change the way things are and how they are perceived. There’s always a new way of doing things. Especially if you’re in leadership. It’s important to use your voice and platform to take initiative and speak up.

How are you smashing the status quo in your own life?

There are so many ways. My mom passed away in December of last year, and I was very close to her. My biggest motivator has been to make sure that I’m doing the right things, that I’m on the right path, and that I’m making the right choices for myself, for my life, for my relationships, and for my friendships, and I want to make her proud.

I’m also into health and fitness. I’ve made a lot of personal changes. And the main thing that has stuck with me since my mom’s passing has been to do the right things. The things that I should be doing in life.

You’ve touched on honoring your mother’s legacy. In what ways are you doing that and what do you want your legacy to be?

I want people to know they can rely on me. That I’m always readily available to show up and remind them that they aren’t alone. A lot of people are in spaces where they feel isolated. I want to be the person who will show up for them.

That goes hand in hand with what my mom believed in. Every day I try to live up to what she would be proud of and think of all the things we could be doing together or the conversations we would have. So, I try to do just one extra thing each day. Be a little kinder. Show a little more empathy. My mom was someone who did a for people not because of the recognition, but because it was in her heart.

At her memorial service, so many people spoke about all that she had done over the years. And it just shows the kind of impact you can have on a person. That’s what I want to exude. I want to enjoy doing for others from the heart. I want my actions to come from a kind place. There’s already enough negativity in the world. I just want to be more positive.

You talk a lot about showing up for others. How do you show up for yourself? And then what are some ways you would tell others how to show up for themselves?

Since my mom’s passing, I’ve been told that it’s important to do something every day that makes you happy. So, I go for walks and bike rides sometimes without music so my mind can reset, I’m in therapy, and I’ve also been reading more. I’m very intentional about what I read and how I communicate things. That’s what I’m actively working on.

It’s so easy to get caught up in our day-to-day lives, that we look up and realize that we haven’t done anything for ourselves. We are forever going to be works in progress, so it’s important to do at least one thing a day. Whatever that is.

Today I’ll be doing a little more than one, but I always try to do that for myself. That’s what I advise others. Because when you show up for yourself, you can show up for others, and lead by example.

Women Employed is proud to partner with BMO, via our Women’s Entrepreneurship Hub (WE Hub), to offer workshops to women entrepreneurs and further help them grow their businesses. BMO SmartProgress® Workshops equip participants with the knowledge needed to achieve their financial goals and create a stable financial future through a workshop format that covers topics such as financial foundations, home ownership, retirement and much more. Upcoming workshops include Debt Management and Budgeting with BMO and Small Business Banking Services with BMO. Click here and here to learn more and sign up.