Graduate Mentor Africa

Listen - That you are in need of a job/internship opportunity does not mean you should accept just any offer that comes to your table.⁣
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Most times, you can tell red flags right from the point where they interview you. The only problem is a lot of times, you are too eager to get that offer that you ignore them. ⁣
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Here are some of the interview red flags you must never ignore when you come across them:⁣
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1. They keep you waiting for too long without a prior notification and without apologizing at all when they eventually attend to you. ⁣
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2. They keep going back and forth. They might ask you to keep coming back for further interviews they didn't initially tell you about. Or they might suddenly remember something you should bring after your third interview with them.⁣
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3. They sound condescending because of your level. No matter what level you are, everyone is deserving of respect. ⁣
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4. They can not define what your role will be about. They seem to have an idea but they communicate (whether verbally or non-verbally) that there might be other undocumented things you might have to do on your role, which are not related to your area. ⁣
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5. They talk about the last person who was in your role disdainfully. Even if the person did horribly, they can spare you, an outsider, the details. ⁣
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6. They talk about the last person who was in your role with high regard such that it feels like you may not be able to fill in their shoes. You already have a benchmark and it might be hard meeting up, considering that the circumstances might have been different then. ⁣
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7. They have a high turn-over of staff. Go on LinkedIn and look up their current and previous staff. If a lot of the people who currently work there have only been there for less than a year, or people who have worked there spent less than a year, THAT IS A RED FLAG. ⁣
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Red flags might be subtle but they are obvious enough if you are observant. What other interview red flags do you know? Please, share.⁣
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Was this helpful? Comment below and let me know. Mention a friend who will need this. Share. And don't forget to save.

We have had a lot of followers in recent times so I believe it is time to do a bit of introduction. ⁣
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My name is Orifunke Lawal and I am the founder of Graduate Mentor Africa. I started this initiative because I kept realizing that there were a lot of things not being taught in tertiary institutions but which were very relevant to life after school. ⁣
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Everytime I came across a graduate who didn't know the most basic things but wanted to make a headway in the career world, it always hit me differently. I love to help and provide solutions. And that is why I started GMA. ⁣
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Structures are still being put into place and we are on the lookout for volunteers who can make things work. But the plan is to:⁣
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- Provide resources/trainings that undergraduates and fresh graduates need to stand out, be employable and create wealth for themselves and their families.⁣
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- Facilitate access to opportunities that you need to scale.⁣
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- Provide career guidance and mentorship ⁣
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The mentorship plan will start to kick off when we reach 1000 active followers. So, you better start mentioning your friends to follow now 😂😂⁣
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So, can I meet you? ⁣
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Let me know who you are, your location, school you attend or attended and what level you currently are in life (defined by the questions you need answers to and the challenges you are currently facing so I know how I can help you).

This is important for every fresh NYSC graduate in Nigeria right now. Please, share this and mention someone passing out this period so they can learn.

Reposted from 10 THINGS I WISH I DID AS AN UNDERGRADUATE

put up this challenge one time. This is my own submission.

My undergrad days was something close to boring😂😂. (I don't want to use the exact word).

1. I wish I was more open to building friendship. I was a very reserved person back then in school. I was scared of my friends. I didn't want any stain on my dress, lol. So, I kept with the friends I had. I still am, but I'm working on being more open.

2. I wish I volunteered a lot. My life was likened to a triangle shape. School, Church and Hostel. I saw any other thing as a waste of time.

3. I wish I went out more. I was much of an indoor person. I rarely went for events or parties. I preferred reading in the library and room. I'm doing my best to go out now, even though Covid is kinda limiting this goal of mine.

4. I wish I kept a journal of my journey through school.

5. I wish I was more intentional about making money from my 100 level.

6. I slightly wish I knew about Google Drive. I don't think I have any pictures from my 100 level days.

7. I wish I didn't hoard my gifts. I was good at many things in school, I preferred to keep them to myself instead of sharing to others. I know better now.

8. I wish I was more visible on things that would pave for me. There were many activities that held in my school, but it was either I didn't know about them or I was not hyped enough to attend them.

9. I wish I didn't miss my Convocation service😭. I was the best student(female) in my Unit. I wasn't allowed to enter the hall to receive the acknowledgement because I was late.

10. In conclusion, I wish I did more of more - exploring, trying new things and facing my fears.

What do you wish you did better in your Undergrads? -

Last year, a guy sent me a DM in pain. He had just finished with a 2.2 and he felt like the world was already over. ⁣
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He didn't know anyone. He didn't have any connections. In a country where emphasis is often placed on the grade fresh graduates get, he felt the odds were already against him.⁣
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If you are in these shoes, I have good and bad news for you. The bad news is that it is true that the odds are stacked against you. But the good news is that you can beat all of them with a good personal career growth strategy. Knowing that you have to push harder, these are questions you must ask yourself:⁣
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📌 Now that your grades cannot fly, what else can fly? In this case, what skills do you have? You cannot finish with average grades and not have necessary skills to make up for that.⁣
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📌 What skills do you need to have that you do not have yet? How can you gain them? Courses? Certifications? Volunteer or internship experiences?⁣
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📌 What job opportunities can you start applying to with the skills you have gained?⁣
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📌 Who is in your network? Who can you talk to about your plans and desires and that can give you advice on where to go next?⁣
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📌 How well optimized are your online platforms (LinkedIn, especially)? You cannot afford to be AWOL where your potential employers may be.⁣
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Finishing with a 2.2 or third class should not be a death sentence. It is not the end of the world.⁣
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Do you have any questions? Did this help you? Drop a comment and let me know. Someone else also needs to read this. Mention three other fresh graduates or students.

This advice is very golden. I have said it a lot of times. If you are just starting your career, that is the time for you to aggressively build capacity and grow. ⁣
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Don't be in a hurry to leave a place just because you are doing too much. The major question to ask yourself is, "Is there an upside to this?"⁣
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Are you learning? ⁣
Are you growing? ⁣
Is where you are a field you intend growing in for the next five to ten years? ⁣
Then stay, at least, till you have learnt enough to move on. ⁣
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This is also why you need to have a vision for your career so even when it seems tough right now, there's a bigger picture in the future. ⁣
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Again, unless it is overly physically and mentally overbearing, do not pass on the opportunity to grow in your field and grow personally. It will help you in the future. ⁣
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Was this helpful? Now, go ahead, be helpful and mention someone else like you who will need this.

Dear graduates, what do you wish you did as an undergraduate? Perhaps students can learn from your experience? ⁣
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I've spoken with some graduates and they are in on this already. I believe that sharing things you wish you had done will give others who are currently in your shoes the opportunity to learn and choose their battles carefully. ⁣
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I will share my challenge on my personal page but I will tag my graduate friends so they can join in as well 💃🏾💃🏾⁣
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This challenge is inspired by who shared his earlier via his Twitter account. ⁣
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Are you an undergraduate, mention five graduates whose challenges you would like to see in the comments now 👇🏾👇🏾👇🏾

Finally, my assignment is here o. Do you know why I am doing this? Because I like to be sure that the people who I am teaching are following closely and are serious about practising. Also, we never know how much we know, can do, need to know or need to do IF WE DON'T DO.

A lot of people amass knowledge on social media but they just never use it.

You think you've learnt stuff? How about you take the time to apply what you have learnt? That's why I am giving you this assignment. You can choose not to do it but I think you'll be doing yourself great good but actually doing it.

-Pick any of the options provided (if you want, you can write on more than one or even all of them to test your knowledge).

-Send to [email protected]. You can copy or blind copy the email of one of your close friends. SWIPE TO SEE THE ADDITIONAL NOTES

Deadline for submission is this Sunday.

Cheers!

THIS IS THE LAST IN THIS SERIES! (I feel so relieved. Whew!)

I remember this time I asked a girl to send someone an email and copy me in it, she was so lost.

"Copy as in how?" She asked.

She had just finished school and even though I was tempted to wonder how she didn't know his all through her 5 years in school, I had to see it from her perspective and tried to understand that there are indeed a lot of things you are not taught in school.

Everyone who writes emails a lot know this and as someone just starting out in the business or corporate world, you need to know this like you know your name.

Swipe to see the examples:

The TO section is where you input the email address of the person you are sending your email address to.

CC means "Carbon Copy". When you CC me in a mail, you are basically telling me that you just want me to be aware of the mail. A lot of people use this to serve as a proof that you did something.

BCC means "Blind Carbon Copy". It performs the same function as CC. The only difference is that the person you are sending the email TO does not know someone else is aware of the email. You can also use the BCC function if you want to send an email to many people at the same time but you don't want them to know you're sending to all of them.

NOTE:

Whenever you want to reply an email, BE CAREFUL about using the "REPLY ALL" function. If you "Reply All", you could be including other people who are not supposed to be in the email. Just "Reply" to unless you are sure the people who are initially copied have to be aware of your reply or follow-up emails.

Like. Comment. Share. Mention someone who should see this. Are you ready for my assignment?

A big part of writing an email is knowing the essence of a writing tone. When you speak with a person physically, you can see their mannerisms, hear their tone of voice, observe their body language. Hence, the likelihood of misunderstanding them is quite low.


However, when it comes to emails, the chances of misunderstanding and being misunderstood are reasonably higher. Now, there is no physical voice, body language or mannerisms to accompany what you're saying. You could be thinking you're being professional but the other person thinks you're so unprofessional.


Here are tips on how to ensure professionalism in your emails:


1. Consider who you are writing to. If you are writing to a friend, you can afford to use humour or relaxed words in your email. But if you are writing to a colleague at work and you guys aren't close like that, or a supervisor, then you should keep it strictly professional. Forget humour or relaxed language.


2. Longer sentences/paragraphs work better for professional emails. Why? They explain the intention of your email better. Shorter sentences/paragraphs, on the other hand, have a higher chance of coming across as insulting and unprofessional.


3. Avoid accusatory, commanding and demanding language. Put the person in your shoes before sending that email.


4. Avoid the use of abbreviations (you know this already) and slangs, no matter how cool they are.


5. Go back and read the last post I did on writing an email body.


(SWIPE to see examples for clarification)


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3. WRITING YOUR EMAIL BODY

While your email subject and email address are important, you want to be able to achieve the aim of your writing. This is the essence of having a well-written email body.

GENERAL TIPS ON WRITING YOUR EMAIL BODY:

1. Salutation: If you do not know who is at the other end, say "Dear Sir/Ma". If you're applying for a job, you can say "Dear Hiring Manager" or "Dear Recruiting Manager".

It is silly to assume that your recipient is a man. I often get a lot of "Dear Sir" and it pi**es me off, I am not going to lie. Use gender-balanced or gender-neutral salutations when you do not know the person on the other end.

2. Introduction: Many people have to go through tons of emails every day so what they do mostly is peruse your email. If you're sending me an email, a well-stated introduction allows me to know what it is about instead of having to read through the whole email before finding out.

3. Paragraphs: Don't lump all your points in one body. If you have three different points, use three different paragraphs and make sure to build each point in each paragraph. This is not just good advice for email writing but all kinds of writing.

4. Action: What is your recipient supposed to do? If your email is vague, they might feel like, "Okay, why is this person telling me this?"

5. Always close with a salutation. This could be anything so it's flexible. You might choose not to use the regular "Warm regards" and just say "Many thanks". There are no hard rules but do well do close your email.

6. Proofread. Proofread. Proofread. Sending an email with obvious errors comes across as you being lazy or not paying attention to details.

7. DON'T USE ABBREVIATIONS! Practise typing in full even when you're chatting with your friends so when you're sending an email, you don't type "u" for "you.

The last two slides are simple email body examples to make it clear to you.

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2. YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS

Dear graduate mentee, your email address is very important. When I see an email address, I usually develop a sort of perception about the sender. Maybe that's not so fair but I am not alone, I promise. I have spoken with some HR friends who have also mentioned having to deal with "unofficial" emails.

Why are you having an email address that looks like any of these?

- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
[email protected]

Whyyy? It's not good enough o.

TIPS ON CHOOSING A PROFESSIONAL EMAIL ADDRESS

1. Use your real name so when you're sending emails, it just tallies with your introduction of yourself. E.g., [email protected]

2. Avoid using your first name and middle name or any other name that doesn't tally with your introduction of yourself. E.g. [email protected] (This is not so bad though)

3. If the email addresses are not available, you can use something like [email protected] or simply use underscores (e.g., [email protected])

I recommend you use Gmail over other email providers.

So, let me give you an assignment. What's your email address? Does it look similar to any of the ones I wrote up there? Avoid me plix! 😂 Okay, I'm just kidding.

Oyah, go and change that email with the speed of light. It won't take you up to 15 minutes to get another email on Gmail.

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