#Selfie Reflection with My Mentor
By Ugochi Oduozo, Junior Endpoint Technician Intern at DocuSign
Hello, my name is is Ugochi Oduozo and I’m a Junior Endpoint Technician Intern at DocuSign. One of the best parts of my Year Up experience has been networking with other professionals and gaining a mentor through Cheryl Davis. It’s been great working with Cheryl over the past few months, I have come to experience mentoring from a different perspective, that is, it does not have to be always formal. We have had great laughing moments and I have also gained a lot of career and personal advice from her. Cheryl is really passionate about mentoring and she is a huge advocate of young adults. I’m inspired to one day pay it forward and be a mentor myself as I would love to make a positive impact in the lives of young adults. I interviewed Cheryl to learn more about what it’s like being a mentor.
Who are you and what is your role? My name is Cheryl Davis and I am the manager of Presentation Design at Salesforce. I work with a Diverse team.
How did you first get involved with Year Up? I decided to get involved with year up a couple of years ago after meeting a couple of interns at Salesforce from Year Up. They were interning for other departments and sought me out for informational interviews, to grab coffee and get a better sense of what I do. I was very impressed with the interns that I met and decided that I had to be a part of the program. As much as mentoring comes natural to me, I also saw these interns as people who really wanted someone to talk to both on a personal and professional level and I wanted to provide a positive mentoring experience for them.
Did you have a professional or personal mentor? I did not have a professional or personal mentor but I wish I had one as I believe it would have been a lot less rocky. It would have provided me a platform to make informed business and career decisions, helped me learn from a more experienced professional, increased my confidence in making decision. I have learned a lot on this journey through my career but I’m grateful to have the opportunity to serve as a mentor for the year up program.
How do you think I’ve changed over the past 6 months? Although you seemed very confident when I met you, I would say that you’ve come more into your own space, gained more insight into what plans and goals you have for yourself in the next few years to come, also you have become even more confident in advocating for yourself. I’m excited about your future.
What has been a highlight of the last 6 months together? The laughs. I have enjoyed listening and offering advice, but most of all, the laughter. It eases off every tension and gives room to discuss and share opinions even on a more personal level.
What have you learned from this experience? Most of all, I have learned that I love being a mentor. I have had the opportunity to meet smart, bright and capable young people. I have also learned that mentoring comes very easy to me. It’s all about being available, and listening — and laughing of course.
Interested in becoming a mentor like Cheryl? Apply through the form at the bottom of this page.
Exciting opportunity! All donations from 2017 mentors will be matched till the end of the year. Make a tax-deductible gift today!
