Build resilience through knowledge sharing

As a mentor, I might not always know the answer to a question, but I can find it over a couple of emails. I have never had anybody [from my network] say no, and that’s the beauty. Students often think they couldn’t possibly approach someone cold.

Working with [my mentor] meant I wasn’t doing things by trial and error. He was there to guide me. It was really compound learning from someone else’s experience.

What I really enjoy about mentoring is the richness that comes with the relationship as trust and rapport builds and you start to dig a bit deeper. I am continually delighted to discover new skill sets and different perspectives, which is why I leave the door open to an ongoing relationship.

Mentor relationships are a valuable part of not only business, but in life in general. Drought affects everyone at some point, it’s up to us to be better prepared for drought when it occurs. We have the opportunity now to make positive change and support each other into the future.

The most important advice I can offer in a mentoring relationship is have a big vision for your future and be courageous enough to discuss it with the right people that can help give you clarity and insight and build up connections to help you get there.

Knowing that [my mentor] had the viticulture background gave me confidence that she would understand orchards and that was really helpful. I knew the chances of being matched with a nut expert would be pretty slim, but it was great to have the perspective from a similar but different background.

I think a lot of the time it’s the people from out of town, who come into Winton to buy goods and services, that really support the town during tough times. It’s not just property owners or pastoralists who are affected by drought, it’s everybody in the community. 

At the time, I felt isolated because I wasn’t able to use the knowledge and skills that I had developed from my university days. While I’m involved with different committees in my amazing community, I didn’t feel I was contributing enough. I saw this program as an opportunity to become more active and provide further support.

We live in the Riverland, and the only thing that keeps us alive is the Murray system. We’ve had minimal water go through in recent years and that puts a big strain on the system. A lot of people don’t understand that the weather systems are changing, massive storms go through, crop damage has been part of it. It’s about adapting, but farmers are good at that.

This is so exciting to hear about the new national mentoring program and is such a great opportunity for people in our rural community. I had the most amazing 6 months doing the Drought Resilience Mentoring Program with ARLF this year as a Mentee. My Mentor Tess is one of the most incredible & inspiring ladies I have ever met and is now stuck with me for life. We have stayed in touch and just recently I have needed some guidance and she was more than happy to help me and spent time helping me work through what I needed. Doing the program with Tess and the webinar series included with the program helped me build on my professional & personal development, helping me strive for more and work on being the leader I hope to be.