“Mentorship is one of the purest forms of care – when no one is paid to care”.
This thought from James Michael Lafferty stayed with us after our P&G Alumni Mentorship Program kickoff conversation.

That’s part of what makes mentorship so meaningful: someone choosing to invest their time, share their experience, and help another person grow, with the reward being the satisfaction of seeing someone else succeed.

James shared honest, real-life examples from both sides of mentorship – as a mentor and as a mentee – and what makes these relationships truly valuable.

One thing that stood out was the importance of honesty. Mentors need to be willing to give honest feedback, and mentees need to be open to receiving it, even when it’s uncomfortable and challenges their perspective in a big way.

James also shared a good reminder to embrace life as a whole, including the parts we would not necessarily choose. Life doesn’t come with only the ingredients we like. He compared it to minestrone: you get ingredients you love and others you don’t. You can’t pick only your favorites or obsess over the ones you like least – you have to eat the soup.

A big thank you to everyone who joined us live, and to the dozens more who requested the recording afterwards. It’s encouraging to see this conversation reaching beyond the room.

Thank you, James Michael Lafferty, for sharing your experience so openly, it was an honor to interview you, and to everyone helping bring the P&G Alumni Mentorship Program to life.

For those who like catching the last train: mentee applications are still open for a little while longer. Grab one of the last spots and apply now!

P&G Alumni Mentorship Team