As National Mentoring Month comes to a close, I can’t help thinking about how lucky I’ve been throughout my entire career to have a number of mentors who have guided me along the way. One of my most important mentors, continues to inspire and counsel me to this day. I can honestly say that I would not have accomplished what I have and be in the position where I am today without his sound advice and constant support. For the past 26 years I’ve had the rare opportunity to work for a company that has experienced continuous success and growth since the day I started and my mentor is the CEO of this company, Peter Rush.
When I started my job as an assistant, I’ll never forget some of the advice Peter Rush, then President, gave me within my first few weeks of working. He would say “let them teach you how – but if there’s a way to cut out steps and get the same or better results without sacrificing quality, go ahead and make that change.” He was always encouraging all employees to go with their gut, focus on new ideas and processes. I once popped into his office with a major challenge on one of my associations. I was practically in tears and, as always, he dropped everything to listen. When I expected him to simply spout out the answers the way he had done before, this time was different. It was the turning point for me. He said sternly, “don’t come into my office again with a problem, unless you have options for solutions.” I got it. He was teaching me the most important leadership skills, and from that moment on, when I would share my frustrations and challenges with him, I was looking for validation because I already knew what the next steps had to be.
Not surprising that, under Peter Rush’s leadership, our company went from one office with 20 employees in New York City to 7 offices around the world with over 350 employees serving thousands of association members. My mentor still takes my calls and always has his door open for me to provide simple words of encouragement. I know. I’m very lucky.
Holly Munter Koenig is an NYSAE Board member, Chairs NYSAE's Executive Women in Nonprofits SIG and Chairs NYSAE's Social Media Task Group. She also Chairs the Advisory Board of Mentoring USA. Holly is Vice President of Kellen Company, serving as Executive Director of the NYC Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and provides executive oversight for 5 other trade associations and professional societies. You can follow her on Twitter at @AssocResource.