in the mind of...stephanie

YWiB opened up my eyes to the world.   Provided the opportunity to meet inspiring female leaders in the community.  Introduced the concept of organic mentorships.  Welcomed new perspectives and fresh ideas.  Showed the power of investing in women. Embraced the ambitious, independent, globally and socially conscious woman. Made networking fun and exciting.  Taught the business skills essential in developing new initiatives. After transferring from the University of Western Ontario in my third year following a small set-back in my life, YWiB was just in its beginning stages with the planning of the first-ever Beyond Pink conference.  Fast-track one year and a coffee chat later and I was sitting with a group of six talented ladies at a YWiB@UBC meeting heading up logistics to plan the upcoming YWiB non-profit organization panel discussion.  At this point, I only knew vaguely what YWiB was about especially from a background in science.  Now, almost 9 months later, I have learned that YWiB is what you make it to be; how a few like-minded, ambitious women can inspire and empower women and how beneficial a network like this is especially for women just entering the first few years of their career.

On a personal level, YWiB caught me in a moment when I wanted to change the way I lived my life.   I wanted to become more engaged in my community, wanted a supportive group that would give me the confidence to pursue the things I was passionate about, I wanted to learn more about business, and wanted to be able to contribute to something I genuinely believed in.  YWiB helped me achieve all of that.  The non-profit organization panel discussion in January introduced me to interesting women who came from similar backgrounds as me.  At the Invest In Women event I learned the importance of connecting women in the fight to end global poverty through discussions with Jacki Zehner, Christine Grumm, and Jensine Larsen.  These two events led me to found and direct an international health conference at UBC where students learned about the major challenges and opportunities in international health, from the role of maternal and infant health in alleviating poverty to ethical implications of international service.

YWiB is organically teaching women to become leaders in society.  She is pairing women with diverse interests and a high level of ambition and providing new avenues for innovation.  She is showing how important it is to have a committed group of individual – specialists in different fields – to tackle the bigger things in life like poverty, health, and education.

I have been away for most of the summer working and traveling in SE Asia, but am amazed at how much time and effort the team has put forth to have the organization at where it is today.  We are in the works of organizing unique events like Beyond Pink, a business series for non-business students, and an “unconference” conference.  We are providing opportunities for women to get involved in the community under our philanthropic wing.  We are creating new ways for women to network.  We are being bold when people thought we were crazy.

YWiB has come a long way and I feel so honoured to be a part of it.  I hope your time with us will inspire you to begin building your own story...

Cheers,

Stephanie

in the mind of... paulina

YWiB Resource- Internship Program One of YWiB’s pillars that we base our events and ideas on is providing resources. Now, I have to admit, that’s a pretty broad statement. Let me share with you the newest resource we are offering, and why I’m so excited about it: the YWiB Internship Program. We’re offering up some incredible resources (our network + ourselves!) and asking you to join is on the ride.

What is an internship? “Any official or formal program to provide practical experience for beginners in an occupation or profession.”

The YWiB internship is a new, and yes, official program, that we are launching for our team moving forward. We believe that the practical experience that you get, and the amount of hard work you will put into your position, warrants the title of an intern. The occupation? Well, that one's easy. We're all in the profession of defining success and working towards getting the skills to achieve it- that's what YWiB promises to provide you with in return for your dedication and continuous growth with us.

The internships are unpaid, however the tangible benefits you will gain are: YWiB membership for the duration of your internship, technical advice for the area you will be working on, access to YWiB network, exposure to a non-profit startup organizational structure, and a heck of a lot of fun. At the end of your internship, you will also receive a letter of endorsement from our Board of Advisors and Directors- talk about having great people behind your back! We're essentially asking you for knowledge philanthropy: the donation of one's knowledge, skill and experience to move an organization closer to its mission.

Not your typical volunteer position, eh? If you like to be a rockstar at work and think gold stars are the best reward you could get- join our team! We’d be honored to have you on board and are stoked to make some magic happen together. Check this out for more info.

Cheers,

P

In the mind of ... jen sung

One of YWiB’s fundamental pillars is that of networking. There are two key components to this: Firstly, “pillars” according to YWiB refer to the essential bases of information and skills that we provide to our members. Our statement is “… to connect young women with the knowledge and support to achieve success on their own terms and to become engaged members of the community”. The pillars of YWiB are the encompassing activities our organization carries out to further this statement.

Secondly, YWiB firmly believes in organic networking (similar to our stance on organic mentorship) - encouraging people to meet and get to know one another on their own terms. Our organization understands the intimidating and often misleading connotations of the word “networking”. At the same time, we appreciate the substantial value that underlies the spirit of this word and seek to develop this indispensable skill within our members – in a unique way. We do this by holding events that create the right environment for our members to positively interact with each other and share each others’ stories, the true goal of networking. The small aspects of our events that we tailor to our members are something we affectionately refer to as the “YWiB factor” and truly make a significant difference.

We cordially invite you to attend our future events and experience this “YWiB factor” for yourself.

Take care, Jen Sung

in the mind of...demi

Teams. I've been lying on my bed all day today.  As fate would have it, once again I could not avoid the annual fever.  For the past 3 years that I have visited Hong Kong I always end up with some sort of severe flu or infection.  At least it's not swine flu!

OK, so far, this isn't relevant to the fundamental pillars of YWiB, let me get to it.  I am an incredibly needy person when I am sick, and at the moment, I am living by myself somewhere in the middle of Hong Kong with no solid foods in my flat except for 3 pieces of rather dry sliced bread.

Which leads me to think - how great it is to have a team.

Humans are social animals, especially women, who are genetically disposed to prefer making connections and working in groups.  One of the things that YWiB does is connect people, and one of our fundamental pillars is the concept of a team.

In commerce, we learn that the most important thing is networking.  The simplified version is to go to events and retain as many business cards as possible (I know, I know, it's actually more work than that).  I am not bad at getting the cards, but I am horrendous at staying in touch.  Attending YWiB events feels more like team building.  After I get the cards of these fabulous women, even if I haven't emailed them back after the initial "thanks for coming/speaking", I feel more comfortable in getting in touch again.  I think it's because we all essentially share a common goal to change the world by the power of women. Even with members or attendees of the events, I feel so much more at ease in introducing myself (note: I am extremely socially awkward).

Networking is important, you can learn of opportunities and information you would otherwise not be able to attain.  This may sound superficial, but it is essential to self-advancement. Teams though, they support each other in times of need.  When one is down, the others immediately step up without grand expectations of something in return.  When someone has a great idea, the rest to support it (or if its not actually that great, then bash it) without calculating "how can this benefit me?"

There are many good reasons to become part of a team: multiplied resources, sharing experiences, avenues of knowledge, momentum for change, etc.  Or sometimes, it's just nice to have people give you snaps because you bought a cute sweater the other day - and that's just one of many things YWiB girls are always good for. =)

Cheers, -D

In the mind of...nicky

Mentors. Here is one interesting way to view your parents: Life Mentors. I never really thought about this until I started to think about the importance of having mentors in your life. Your parents are the first to teach you how to walk, how to behave, and the first teach you countless other “how-to’s” for you to successfully survive in this world. And for me the most valuable aspect of having these life mentors guiding me is the comfort of knowing that they are rooting for me when I dealing with a difficult situation. Not only that but they also act as a sounding board for important decisions or act as someone to put me in my place when I am acting like a total idiot.

Now relate this to your professional life. Do you have someone as a professional mentor?

I was lucky enough to gain a professional mentor while I was fairly young. At the beginning I did not even realize that he was acting as a mentor figure and it was not until a few years later that I realized what an impact he had on my life. There was definitely a “mentor relationship learning curve”. And as you grow, you may find what you want to learn will change and therefore may seek out other mentors that can teach you. Out of my experiences, I can share that the most challenging part is finding the right person to fulfill that mentor role. But once you do, the value you gain from that relationship is very much worth it.

One way YWiB's university chapters are supporting young women in gaining a successful mentor relationship is helping them define elements that constitute as a successful relationship to them. By knowing what they are looking for it can make their search for a mentor a lot easier.

Nicky

in the mind of... marica

an eager beaver Ask me what the most valuable lessons I’ve learned are? Now ask me where I learned them?

No. Not in the classroom. And no, this isn’t a stab at the teaching at UBC; in fact I’ve enjoyed my classes so far and admire and appreciate many of my professors.

This is about the other kind of education that is imperative to discover before graduating university and moving on into the real world; the practical education that I find I use much more often than the classroom knowledge. What I’m talking about is the skills gained through getting involved.

I’m a bit of an eager beaver and have been involved in extracurricular clubs and activities since high school. It’s through these clubs that I’ve learned how to communicate and collaborate with others and to solve problems outside of a math equation. I’ve learned to be accountable not only to myself, but to others, and I've learned the meaning and importance of teamwork. These are just a few, and these are the practical skills required in the workplace – the real world.

This is why one of YWiB’s pillars is education. YWiB strives to enhance the education that young women accomplish at school with a practical component. YWiB offers many opportunities to get involved whether at university, through the new internship program, or as a member. It is also why we hold a variety of events throughout the year, all with different topics, but all geared towards the same end goal – to give young women additional tools and skills to advance in the workplace and to achieve success on their own terms.

What are you doing to enhance your education? How can you further develop your own skill set? How does YWiB fit into your equation and how can we help you build your story?

Chat again next week!

marica

in the mind of... paulina

I have to start off by saying… this blog post was A LOT harder for me to write than I thought it would be! Not because it’s a blog post, but because of the topic we chose: What does YWiB mean to you?

I thought about it hard. The first word that comes to my mind is: everything. I’ve been involved with YWiB since before it was what it is today, I’ve seen it s great success and tremendous impact it has, and I have also seen the lowest point of its existence- well, really, the brink of non-existence.

The journey I’ve had with this organization has been tremendously humbling and, thus far in my, albeit not very long yet, career, the single greatest learning experience I have ever had. If I can tell you anything about what YWiB has taught me, is that everything is exactly what you make of it. That applies to any life experience or anything you ever get involved with. You have the incredible opportunity to make an impact wherever you are, and it is your attitude and your willingness to continuously challenge yourself to learn and grow that will make you stand out and achieve your own success. Every time you join a new initiative or start a new relationship, you stand at the crossroads of making it great and rewarding, or… I challenge you to never follow the “or” path.

On the organizational level, YWiB is the intersection between your best girlfriend and your mom. It can help you grow, provide you with the resources to help you with your unique challenges, and allows you to be involved with the organization itself through internship and volunteer opportunities. We open up our resources and connect you with exceptional leaders in the community in the hopes of getting to know your story and seeing your dreams come true.

On a personal level, YWiB has allowed me to build truly powerful connections with ladies I am inspired by every day. The YWiB team (around 50 team members right now!) has the potential to truly change the world through their excitement, passionate pursuance of their goals, and extremely kind and generous hearts. I’m beyond honored to work with them and be able to call them my friends. A girl can only be so lucky!

To those I have already met through YWiB: a tremendous thank you. To those I have not yet had the incredible pleasure to meet: please introduce yourself! We’d love to hear from you and see how YWiB can help build your story…

All my best,

P