OWL Mentoring Program fosters professional development, personal growth

OWL members who attend the upcoming American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting will have the opportunity to learn the benefits of a new program offered by the organization. OWL’s first Mentoring Program event will be an informative, highly energetic, interactive session that explains the key dimensions and value of a contemporary approach to mentoring.

Heather Ready, chair of the Mentoring Program Committee and the national sales director for USGI Medical in San Clemente, Calif., said there are so many talented and experienced women in OWL that launching a mentoring program provided the organization with an excellent opportunity to expand member benefits.

"Mentoring is a way for both the mentor and mentee to grow," she said.

The event will begin with an overview of the program’s focus, opportunities and benefits. New mentor/mentees pairs will share how their mentoring relationship started and how it is working. Roundtable discussions will follow to encourage group interaction and sharing of what the attendees would like to get from a mentoring relationship, Ms. Ready said.

"We hope that more OWL members will seriously consider how mentoring could help them professionally and what they could contribute to a mentoring relationship. We hope additional members will sign up to participate in the program. Our members have such great skills and backgrounds to share," she said.

Marsha D. Link, PhD, a clinical psychologist and principal and co-founder of Link Consulting in Irvine, Calif., will be the event’s keynote speaker. Dr. Link specializes in executive coaching, leadership development, strategic planning and board development. She is also a co-founder of Spectra Consultant and was formerly co-founder and director of human resources for Chiron Vision. Additionally, Dr. Link has worked at Indiana University Medical Center and has taught at the University of California in the Business and Management Executive Education Program and at Webster University.

As a speaker, educator and consultant, she has served clients in both the private and public sectors covering a variety of topics, including interviewing and recruitment, communications skills, conflict resolution, diversity training, team-building, board development, strategic planning and outplacement counseling. As a clinician, Dr. Link has worked in inpatient and outpatient health care organizations, as well as community counseling clinics.

"Mentoring provides a valuable means of lifelong learning opportunities for both the mentor and the mentee," she said. "Mentoring is an under-used vehicle for professional development that is extremely valuable while being very cost-effective."

Dr. Link said mentoring programs have the possibility to enhance professional growth, foster creativity, and provide inspiration and hope for those engaged in the mentoring relationship, particularly in a relatively small industry like ophthalmology.

"I think that because of this relative ‘smallness’ of the industry, there is a great opportunity for mentors and mentees to learn from each other and to find mutual grounds where collaboration is possible," she said. "Also, in ophthalmology, there is a keen desire to be innovative and push the envelope for new techniques and products that really end up having an amazingly positive impact on many people. People who work in these ophthalmology companies will have invested in themselves to maximize their potential as contributors in the industry."

Ms. Ready said mentors are important because they help one move forward effectively and with a specific direction, sorting through the varied pathways that present themselves.

"I think mentors are particularly important in ophthalmology because they challenge us to advance the products, services and field to the fullest. Mentors bring us to a new level and encourage us to take our industry to a new level. They also expand each person’s impact through the sharing of their expertise, which helps the industry grow," she said.

Strong, enduring relationships

Dr. Link said she has had several mentors throughout her career, some formally, but most have been informal mentors whom she has watched, witnessed their behaviors, and with whom she has had meaningful conversations. She said strong, enduring relationships are very much aligned with what she considers the essence and benefits of mentoring.

"Perhaps my greatest mentors were my parents, who gave me the basic values that have guided my life. My husband of 42 years has also been a tremendous mentor; we have known each other a very long time and have together established our beliefs and values that have provided the basis for our personal and professional choices," she said.

Dr. Link said her different mentors have offered different things, but all provided her with learning experiences that have affected her both personally and professionally. She has had both male and female mentors, although she wishes she had had more women mentors earlier in her career as it would have been helpful to see how they made choices related to family and work.

"I often found myself wanting to interact with more females who might have faced the same challenges I faced, particularly as a young woman and mother," Dr. Link said. "Mentoring today – in the 21st century – is more in tune with focusing on the ‘total’ woman. Thus, I think that outstanding mentoring not only address what is important in the professional realm, but also tackles the personal aspects in a mentee’s life."

A strong belief that she holds and has been reinforced over the years from her mentors is that one should keep an attitude of life-long learning, she said.

"We are never ‘fully cooked’ no matter how old we are nor how many successes we have had in our personal or professional lives. An openness to learning is key to development, both personally and professionally," Dr. Link said.

Ms. Ready said one thing she has learned from her mentors is to view challenges as opportunities, even if it is just to learn something new.

"They have helped me to see situations from an alternative point of view and to not be afraid to take risks as they often lead to the advancement in skills, position or how others perceive you," she said.

Get involved

Dr. Link said she hopes the program will reinforce the value of mentoring and encourage OWL members to participate.

"I hope for OWL members that this program can become a thriving part of the organization and that those who benefit from mentoring will become the best marketers for the program," she said.

Future plans call for the pairing of more OWL mentors and mentees. Additionally, there will be a webinar to offer guidelines about mentoring, including giving prospective participants the opportunity to ask questions and share their own experiences.

"Our hope is that the program will grow in both number of pairs involved as well as add additional areas of expertise that the mentors are prepared to assist mentees with advancing," Ms. Ready said. 

The OWL Mentoring Event will be held at the OWL Reception on Monday, Oct. 26, at the Intercontinental Hotel in San Francisco from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. Applications for the OWL Mentoring Program are still being accepted. For more information or to apply to the program, please contact Molly Schar at info@owlsite.org.

– Kristine Houck, Curriculum Director, Slack Incorporated

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