Pick the Right Mentor: Lessons in Leadership From Laurel Mintz
As a young woman in my early twenties, I find it really important for me to surround myself with intelligent people who have a lot to teach me. Mentors not only share their experience and expertise, they show you your own strengths and encourage you to overcome your challenges. They create boundaries to keep you focused and connect you to the right people and opportunities at the right time.
I couldn’t have chosen any better mentor than Laurel Mintz. She has taught me so many things that I will take with me throughout my personal and professional life. Here are three of the many lessons in leadership that I have learned from her in my time at Elevate My Brand.
Always Show Up With a Positive Attitude
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from Laurel is that your attitude shapes everything. Being at the helm comes with a lot of responsibility. If the leader isn’t showing up at their best, then the team won’t either. Laurel always makes it a point to show up at her best, even in times where it may seem impossible to do so. And when life gets her down, she acknowledges it, of course, but doesn't stop cracking jokes or putting a smile on everyone’s faces. Her outlook on life is unconditionally positive, even in the face of a challenge.
Treat Your Team Like Family
No doubt about it, the year 2020 has been a hard one. With the coronavirus pandemic, the senseless murders of Black people and the many other tragedies in our world right now, it’s impossible to feel as though life is normal right now. In fact, life is very much not normal right now, and we’re all struggling to cope. A leader knows how to lead a team in the good times; a good leader knows how to lead a team in the bad. Where other leaders are pushing through these times and maintaining business as usual, Laurel is designating time for us to have a conversation about what is going on in the world and discuss how we are feeling. She understands that in the grand scheme of things, what’s going on in the world is bigger than what is going on on our desktops. If any one of us on the team is having a hard time, Laurel more than gets it and gives us all the space to take the time we need. We are a family here at EMB, and Laurel doesn’t let us forget that.
Hustle Your Heart Out
Building your own business from the ground up is no easy feat, and Laurel has managed to build a successful one at that. Elevate My Brand and all of its glory would not be possible without Laurel’s years of hard work. As someone who wants to start her own business one day, I look up to Laurel and admire her for her tenacity. Even when times are tough (as they are now), Laurel hustles to get the job done and to make her business the best that it can be. Champions aren’t made when the game is easy, and Laurel has really shown me what it takes to be a champion.
Carly Steinberg, Public Relations Coordinator
Elevate My Brand