Last week I had the honor of being elected to the Board of Directors of the Institute for the Economic Empowerment of Women (IEEW). The timing seemed appropriate given January is National Mentor Month, and the organization is all about mentoring and helping improve the lives of women in Afghanistan and Rwanda. 

Through the Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women’s Peace Through Business® program, women throughout the U.S. mentor women business owners in both countries so they can develop their businesses and become even stronger advocates for peace. Mentorship plays an important role in academic improvement and self-awareness. Learning about the journey someone has traveled to reach success and having them share that with you makes you feel motivated to work even harder.

When we think of mentors, we often think of someone older guiding a younger person through life. However, a mentor can serve as anyone with experience helping another person improve their life. As you read this, I am sure you can think of people who have guided you through your life as well. 

This unique mentorship opportunity through the Peace Through Business program pairs women business owners like me with women from Afghanistan and Rwanda who have similar types of businesses. They live and work with the American business owner to experience how their profession is practiced in the United States. They learn how the business operates, how the American business owner balances her work and personal priorities, as well as form good friendships.

For example, Sarah Sears, owner of S Designs, Inc., in Oklahoma City, has mentored two women business owners--one from Afghanistan and one from Rwanda. She says she loves the experience because both women became friends and the experience helped her realize how much she'd grown her own business. “Both of the women were in the early stages of developing their marketing firms, so they benefitted from experiencing the types of systems we have in place to run as efficiently as possible,” Sears explained.

While giving is always better than receiving, paying forward your gifts offers great benefits to mentors. We live in a global economy and all of the IEEW mentors say they learn just as much from the overseas women as they are able to share with them. 

Take time to say thank you to your mentors, and always be willing to pay it forward.

[Image: Flickr user isafmedia]