YOUTH VOICES • MENTORSHIP

Helping One Another Climb the Ladder

Everyone’s journey up their own career ladder takes time and diligence. Success in this journey is determined by which voices you allow to speak into your life and into your dreams.

TODAY’S WORLD of work looks very different to what it did 30 years ago. My parents speak about how, back then, one could quit one job and easily find another. Quite a few people dropped out of school, but were able to get work and, over the years, even climbed the ranks to reach some or other managerial positions in their workplaces through various training programmes.

A large number of businesses were also owned by local entrepreneurs who employed their own family members as well as members of the surrounding communities. In these enterprises, family members and locals would mentor one, until eventual promotion took place to managerial or other leadership positions in these businesses.

Today, getting a job is much more complicated. During the third quarter of 2025, South Africa had 13.3 million underutilised persons, people who have skills that are not being used in the labour market, of which 8 million were unemployed, 4.5 million were in the potential labour force, and 747,000 were in time-related underemployment.

The minimum requirement for most jobs is a matric certificate as well as a driver’s license. Many apply, even those holding multiple degrees, but only a few succeed. Once you have secured a job, the chances of a promotion are slim, despite extra qualifications and further studies.

So: what can help one stand out from the rest?

Mentorship and Job Selection

Mentorship remains an underutilised key to securing a job that is suited to one’s skillset, and then growing in this workplace, regardless of the time and context.

Growth and development in the workplace, whether it be in the form of training and learning opportunities, skills transfer or mentorship programmes, significantly motivate and develop employees and even improve a company’s employee retention rate.

While some people are born leaders, thinkers, and pioneers, we all need someone to help us find a niche, to hone our specific skills, and to gain new ones which open up new avenues within our fields of interest.

My Experience with Mentorship

Mentorship has definitely helped me in my journey thus far. I recently registered as a professional Landscape Architect, which would not have been possible without mentorship.

In High School I had been ignorant about the field of Landscape Architecture, but came across it through researching careers related to architecture. At the time, I knew nobody who would be able to guide me on this journey, and thus told myself I would have to go on a solo mission.

In order to be accepted into the Architecture Faculty at the University of Pretoria, one needs to undergo various tests and interviews. My brother mentored me through this process, as he has a background in Fine Arts, and had to undergo various tests himself to be accepted into his programme.

An assignment required us to visit various Landscape Architectural firms. This offered most useful guidance and exposure — yet another experience of mentorship.

Throughout my studies, God provided various mentors and guides. I graduated from the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes and was then required to work as an intern for at least a year, followed by a Candidacy period.

For four years, I worked under mentors who were registered as such with my Professional Council.

Mentorship has definitely helped me on my journey thus far.

My mentors exposed me to a range of project types with various scales, from a small residential project to a city block development, to a nature reserve. They also helped me see where I was making good progress towards registration and where I needed help.

They introduced me to fellow Landscape Architects to network with and learn from. All the work experience I received through their guidance enabled me to compile a portfolio of evidence of the work I was involved in.

I submitted this to the South African Council of Landscape Architects to determine whether I qualified to register as a Professional in my field. It took some time, but they assured me I would make it. I did.

Mentorship is about a relationship

Initially mentorship felt very new to me and at times seemed unnecessary. However, now that I have entered the workplace, its value has become much clearer to me.

Mentoring is not so much about teaching as it is about pointing a person in the right direction. In the process, both the mentee and mentor learn from one another.

Mentors reveal to mentees various ways of going about common and complex challenges based on their lived and learned experience. Mentees, on the other hand, remind Mentors of the importance of remaining open-minded and adaptable.

This relationship, as with any other one, does not bear fruit if both parties do not work together. Mentees need to reciprocate efforts by engaging in activities they wish to grow in and by actively seeking guidance from mentors.

Leonardo Da Vinci was a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. His artistic skill was developed under the guidance, influence and teaching of Andrea Del Verrocchio, c. 1435–1488. Andrea was a sculptor, painter and goldsmith.

Leonardo, who became the more famous of the two, for producing work such as the Last Supper and the Mona Lisa, grew to produce work superior to that of his master. This must have been humbling for Andrea, but also a moment to be proud of: he had enabled Leonardo to realise his dreams.

Mentors need to be humble enough to accept that their mentees may one day be as good, if not better, at their craft than they are.

Leonardo’s mentor was thus able to help Leonardo reach his full potential. To do this, Leonardo had to use what he had learned and continue his growth trajectory through acquiring new skills and refining old ones.

The mentor’s role in his life, therefore, had changed — they were now peers. This change is necessary, as it helps one to continue growing in various fields; no two people’s journeys are the same.

Example in the Bible

The prophet Elijah was taken up into heaven in 2 Kings 2:11, leaving his mentee, Elisha, with his coat — his anointing.

After years of mentorship, Elisha knew that he had to now step into the role of prophet of Israel. Elisha asked for a double portion of Elijah’s anointing, just before his mentor made his epic departure.

His request was answered. Throughout the book of 2 Kings, we see that Elisha ended up performing about twice as many miracles as Elijah did — a true testimony to the fact that he had been thrust far beyond the level of his mentoring.

He raised two people from the dead and fed 100 men with 20 loaves of bread — a foretaste of the life of Jesus.

Going Forward

Once the role of a mentor is completed in your life, you will most probably have an idea of what you would like to do going forward. Career-wise, this might be to further your studies, to complete some short courses, to start a business or to move on to a new job.

Whatever you decide to do next, remember to identify someone who can help you grow in that industry. If we were as diligent about seeking mentorship as we are about looking for employment, it could literally mean the difference between getting a job out of need and carving out a niche for others and ourselves in our chosen fields of work.

This is important because the job market is constantly changing, and what is now a typical or regular job might not be as common anymore in the next decade. You need to refine your skills or risk being left behind in this ever-changing world.

God gave each of us a very specific role on this earth because we each do things in our unique ways. By climbing our own ladders to the best of our ability, we grow and develop as a society — making the best use of each person’s unique gifting.

Mentorship can be the push you need to find that sweet spot: being the best version of yourself, while constantly being thrust forward towards an even better version. You could get there on your own, but we need each other to ascend that ladder.

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken (Ecclesiastes 4:12).

References

The Currency. (2025, November 06). The Currency: Work: Investing in Yourself: How mentorship can recharge careers and finances.

STATS SA. (2025, November 27). Home: Data stories: Work and Labour force: Beyond the Unemployment Rate: A Broader Look at Labour Underutilisation.