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Issue #85 - May 20, 2025

Hey everyone,

Remember that nervous excitement of graduation day? The cap, the gown, the ceremonial walk – and then what? That sudden realization that the structured path you've been on for most of your life has ended, and now you're standing there thinking, what now?

This week, we're talking about something that's deeply personal to most people: the critical transition from student to professional and how mentorship can transform that journey from overwhelming to empowering. With graduation season upon us, I've thought about how this life passage represents opportunity and vulnerability for young professionals.

The research confirms what many of us have experienced. The first two years of a career significantly impact long-term professional trajectory. According to MentorCliq's 2024 workplace mentorship study, employees involved in mentoring programs have a 50% higher retention rate than those without mentors, and 94% of workers would stay longer at employers who offer career development opportunities. Yet sadly, about 76% of new graduates report feeling unprepared for the professional world, even with their degrees.

What happens in that gap between academic knowledge and professional success? That's where intentional mentorship makes all the difference. Whether you're a seasoned professional with wisdom to share, a mid-career professional with recent transition experience, or a new graduate seeking guidance, there's something in this issue to help you navigate this critical career passage.

As I was putting together this newsletter, I kept thinking about my mentors who helped me translate my education into real-world impact. Those relationships weren't just nice to have—they were transformative. That's why AFGM has always put special emphasis on supporting these critical transition points.

So, let's dig into the reality of today's career launch and discover how we can build bridges that help new graduates not just survive but thrive in the professional world.

Growth Spotlight

Guiding New Graduates to Professional Success

The moment is picture-perfect: cap tossed in the air, diploma in hand, surrounded by proud family. But what happens Monday morning after the celebration? For most new graduates, the excitement gives way to reality – academic success doesn't automatically translate to professional skills.

As graduation season approaches, mentors have a unique opportunity to transform a potentially rocky transition into a purposeful launch. Research from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) shows that while 79% of students believe they're proficient in professional communication, only 44% of employers agree. Similar gaps exist in critical thinking, leadership, and teamwork – all skills that graduates need to hit the ground running.

This disconnect isn't about intelligence or work ethic. It's about navigating unwritten professional rules that aren't taught in the classroom. Let's explore the most effective mentorship approaches for this transition period:

1. The Unwritten Rules

Sylvia Ann Hewlett, founder of the Center for Talent Innovation, explains that "executive presence"—those subtle behaviors that signal leadership potential—accounts for up to 26% of what gets people promoted. Yet most new graduates have never heard this term, let alone mastered its meaning.

Dr. Maria Cseh, Associate Professor of Human and Organizational Learning at George Washington University, notes that many high-achieving students have mastered academic requirements but lack the skills to navigate workplace relationships with supervisors, and build strategic networks - all critical for professional success.

Try This: Schedule what I call a "Professional Norms Conversation" with any new graduate you're mentoring. Cover topics like communication styles, meeting protocols, dealing with feedback, and navigating office politics. Frame it as "things I wish someone had told me" rather than pointing out deficiencies.

2. Build the Confidence and Competence Loop

New graduates often fall into one of two traps: either overconfidence based on academic achievements or imposter syndrome that prevents them from contributing fully. Effective mentors help establish what psychologist Albert Bandura calls the "confidence-competence loop,” where small successes build confidence, which leads to taking on new challenges, which builds more competence.

Dr. Emily Rutter, organizational psychologist with McKinsey's talent development team, explains: "Early professional wins – even small ones – create a psychological foundation that supports bigger risks later. Without those early wins, many talented graduates become risk-averse, which limits their growth potential."

Try This: Help your mentee identify a "quick win" opportunity within their first 30 days. It should be challenging enough to be meaningful but achievable enough to build confidence. Document both the tangible result and how it made them feel to succeed. Reference this win when encouraging them to take on bigger challenges.

3. Translate Academic Knowledge to Workplace Value

Many new graduates struggle to articulate how their academic experiences translate to workplace value. They've spent years developing valuable skills but haven't learned to frame them in terms that resonate with employers.

According to research from Harvard Business School, this "translation gap" particularly affects first-generation college graduates and those from non-traditional backgrounds, who may lack professional role models who can demonstrate this translation process.

Try This: Work with your mentee to create what I call a "Value Translation Document." List their major academic projects, research, and extracurricular activities in one column. In the second column, identify the professional skills demonstrated. In the third column, articulate how those skills create value in their new workplace context. This becomes both a confidence-building exercise and practical preparation for performance reviews.

The Bottom Line

The transition from student to professional isn't just about learning new skills—it's about adopting a new identity. By focusing your mentorship on decoding unwritten rules, building the confidence-competence loop, and translating academic knowledge to workplace value, you help new graduates navigate not just their first job but also establish patterns that will serve them throughout their careers.

Professional Growth Gateway

Bridging the Skills Gap: From Classroom to Boardroom

When Fortune 500 executives were asked about the biggest challenges with new graduate hires, their answers weren't about technical knowledge. Almost universally, their concerns centered around "professional maturity skills" – those capabilities that transform academic knowledge into workplace effectiveness.

Two years ago, the World Economic Forum Future of Jobs Report highlighted that the most important skills for future workforce success aren't purely technical—they're hybrid skills that combine technical knowledge with human capabilities like adaptability, communication, and leadership. Yet traditional education often leaves these skills underdeveloped.

So, how can mentors help bridge this gap? Here are two critical approaches that research shows make the biggest difference in early career success:

1. Navigating Professional Relationships

Dr. Tasha Eurich, organizational psychologist and author of "Insight," found that relationship navigation accounts for up to 40% of early career success or failure. "Many new graduates are technically brilliant but struggle with managing complex workplace relationships," she explains. "Those who learn these skills quickly often outperform peers with stronger technical backgrounds."

This relationship intelligence includes understanding organizational structures (both formal and informal), identifying stakeholders, building networks, and managing expectations across different personality types and work styles.

The challenge is that most academic environments don't require this type of relationship management. Success in school typically comes from pleasing one authority figure (the professor) and occasionally collaborating with peers of similar status. The workplace introduces multi-directional relationship management across departments and even external partners.

Alex Triantis, Dean of Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, shares that they've completely revamped their curriculum to address this gap: "We've embedded relationship intelligence training throughout our programs, with senior business leaders serving as relationship coaches alongside academic faculty. The results have been transformative."

Try This: Help your mentee or new employee create a stakeholder map of their new organization, identifying key relationships in these categories:

• Direct supporters (who can provide day-to-day guidance)

• Influencers (who shape perceptions of their work)

• Decision-makers (who control resources and opportunities)

• Potential allies (who might share complementary goals)

• Growth connections (who can provide learning opportunities)

For each person, discuss relationship-building strategies that feel authentic rather than transactional.

2. Productive Self-Management

Many new graduates face a significant challenge in adjusting from structured academic environments to professional settings with ambiguous expectations and competing priorities.

Dr. Cal Newport, author of "Deep Work" and computer science professor at Georgetown University, explains that "many students develop study habits that work well for clear, deadline-driven academic assignments but fall apart when faced with the open-ended, quality-focused expectations of knowledge work."

This reality is supported by a LinkedIn Learning survey of over 2,000 professionals, which found that 38% of new graduates reported significant struggles with time management, priority setting, and maintaining focus in professional environments.

Janet Ahn, Microsoft's Chief Learning Officer, shared in a Wall Street Journal interview how they've restructured their onboarding for new graduates: "We now include a six-week productivity skills boot camp alongside technical training. It's dramatically improved both performance ratings and self-reported job satisfaction."

Try This: Establish a "Professional Operating System" – a personalized approach to managing their work that includes:

• Morning planning rituals (15 minutes to set daily priorities)

• Energy management techniques (identifying their peak performance times)

• Distraction elimination strategies (specific to their workplace)

• Weekly review practice (reflection and adjustment)

• Feedback collection methods (proactively gathering input on their work)

The beauty of helping someone develop these skills early is that they become career-long assets. While technical skills may change with evolving technologies and roles, these professional maturity skills only grow in value over time.

Success Spotlight

First-Generation College Graduates Making History

When Dalia Almanza-Smith walked across the stage at Georgia Tech this month to receive her master's degree in computer engineering, she wasn't just completing her own journey – she was rewriting her family's story. As the first person in her family to attend college, her achievement represents a profound shift beyond her career.

The term "first-generation college graduate" describes students whose parents didn't complete a four-year college degree. According to the Center for First-Generation Student Success, these graduates represent about 56% of today's college student population, yet they face unique challenges in translating their degrees into professional success.

Understanding these challenges is essential for effectively mentoring first-generation graduates in their career launch. Let's examine one success story that illustrates both the obstacles and opportunities:

A Trailblazer's Journey

Almanza-Smith grew up in a working-class neighborhood in Atlanta, the daughter of immigrants who worked multiple jobs to support their family. "My parents always emphasized education," she explains, "but they couldn't guide me through the college process since they hadn't experienced it themselves."

After earning her bachelor's degree in 2023, Almanza-Smith faced another unfamiliar landscape – the professional tech sector. "I had the technical skills, but didn't have insider knowledge about navigating the corporate environment. I didn't know anyone in the field. I didn't even know how to properly format my resume for tech companies."

The turning point came when Almanza-Smith connected with the Georgia Tech Alumni Mentoring Program, where she was paired with James Bennett, a senior engineer at Microsoft with 15 years of industry experience.

"James helped me understand the unwritten rules," Almanza-Smith recalls. "Everything from how to present my projects in interviews to how to negotiate my salary. He even practiced mock interviews with me, pointing out subtle communication habits I needed to adjust."

This mentorship made a tangible difference. Almanza-Smith received three job offers and ultimately accepted a position at Adobe with a starting salary significantly above the average for new graduates with similar credentials.

The Mentorship Difference

Bennett explains his approach to mentoring first-generation professionals: "I focus on filling in the knowledge gaps that come from not having family members in professional roles. Things like understanding corporate politics, knowing when to speak up in meetings, and how to build strategic relationships – all the stuff that isn't taught in school but makes a huge difference in career progression."

This mentorship model aligns with research from the Center for First-Generation Student Success. It found that first-generation graduates who received structured mentorship in their first year of employment were 42% more likely to be promoted within two years than those without mentors.

Dr. Sarah Whitley, Assistant Vice President for the Center, explains: "First-generation professionals often have extraordinary problem-solving abilities and work ethic because of the challenges they've overcome. When mentors help them add professional navigation skills to these existing strengths, they frequently outperform their peers."

Creating Cascading Impact

What makes these success stories particularly powerful is their multiplier effect. According to a longitudinal study conducted by the Economic Mobility Project, first-generation college graduates who achieve professional success become critical bridges to opportunity for others in their communities.

Almanza-Smith is already utilizing this principle. While still in her first year at Adobe, she volunteers with a program introducing coding to high school students in her former neighborhood. "I want them to see that someone who looks like them, from where they're from, can succeed in this field," she says.

She's also helping her younger sister navigate her college applications, breaking down another barrier that she had to overcome alone.

A Mentorship Approach That Works

For those mentoring first-generation professionals, research suggests a few specific approaches that make the biggest difference:

1. Explicit communication about implicit rules - Don't assume prior knowledge about professional norms. Be direct about expectations that might seem obvious.

2. Network bridging - Actively make introductions to your professional contacts rather than just suggesting networking.

3. Cultural translation - Help identify situations where cultural backgrounds might create different expectations and provide strategies for navigating these differences.

4. Strength affirmation - Regularly highlight how the unique perspectives and problem-solving abilities developed through overcoming barriers translate into professional assets.

Almanza-Smith reflects on what made her mentorship experience transformative: "James never tried to make me fit some corporate mold. Instead, he helped me understand the expectations so I could be authentic while still being effective. That made all the difference."

Michael's Hot Take

When Erasing History Inspires Action: Why Our Stories Matter More Than Ever

You can't erase history with a click of the delete button. But that hasn't stopped folks from trying.

Last month, references to Richmond's historic Leigh Street Armory – a landmark of Black history and the only 19th-century armory built for a Black militia in America – disappeared from Virginia National Guard's website. Why? It was swept up in the Pentagon's directive to remove content related to diversity, equity, and inclusion across military websites.

Let that sink in for a minute. A building literally listed on the National Register of Historic Places – a structure that served as a school for Black children, a WWII reception center for Black soldiers, and now houses the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia – was deemed too "DEI" to remain on a government website.

This isn't some random footnote. Built in 1895 after lobbying by Richmond Planet editor John Mitchell Jr., this armory represents hard-won progress and recognition. As Marisa Warren, a spokesperson for the museum, plainly stated: "Black history is American history – that is a fact that cannot be denied or deleted."

But here's where I find hope – when certain stories get pushed into the shadows, communities often respond by shining an even brighter light on them.

Just weeks after the website purge, local artists projected images of the soldiers who served at the armory onto the building itself, with the powerful phrases "Resist historical neglect" and "Defend historical truth." People gathered. They learned. They celebrated the 160th anniversary of Richmond's emancipation by Union forces. The erasure attempt backfired spectacularly.

And that's exactly why AFGM's upcoming Echoes of Freedom Tour on July 19th matters so much right now. This guided journey through Northern Virginia reveals the rich and often untold history of African American resilience, activism, and community building in our region.

You'll visit early freedmen settlements that flourished after the Civil War. You'll stand on the grounds where civil rights battles were fought decades before the movement hit national headlines. You'll discover educational institutions that shaped Black intellectual life when mainstream schools closed their doors.

These are the stories that rarely make it into standard history books – not because they lack significance, but often because they challenge narratives about our shared past. They reveal the complexity, the struggle, and most importantly, the triumph of the human spirit against overwhelming odds.

What I love about history isn't just learning what happened, but understanding how people navigated impossible circumstances with creativity, determination, and hope. That's the kind of history that inspires action today.

When we visit these sites together, we're not just tourists. We're witnesses. We're saying these places matter. These lives mattered. And their stories deserve to be heard, preserved, and celebrated – not because of some political agenda, but because they're true.

Let me be perfectly clear. Attempts to control which historical narratives get told aren't new. But in 2025, when information moves at lightning speed and memory seems increasingly short-term, physically visiting historical sites takes on profound importance. Standing in places where history happened creates connections that should not be delted with administrative executive orders.

So join us on the Echoes of Freedom Tour. Bring your family, especially your kids. Let them walk where freedom fighters walked. Let them see the schools built by communities determined to educate their children despite every obstacle. Let them touch the walls of churches that served as organizational hubs for movements that changed America.

Because when we know our full history – not just the comfortable parts, but the whole complicated, inspiring truth – we're better equipped to create a future worthy of those who came before us. And that's something worth fighting for.

What untold stories from your community deserve more attention? Share them with us at [email protected]. Let's make sure these echoes of freedom continue to resonate far and wide.

Until next Tuesday – stay curious, be kind, and remember that history isn't just what's written in official sources; it's alive in the places and people all around us.

~ Michael

Upcoming Events

Echoes of Freedom Tour

• Date: July 19, 2025

• Duration: 5 hours

• The Echoes of Freedom Tour is a guided journey through Northern Virginia, revealing the rich and often untold history of African American resilience, activism, and community building. This immersive experience takes participants to key historical sites, including early freedmen settlements, civil rights landmarks, and educational institutions that shaped Black history in the region. Why attend? Connect with the powerful legacy of those who fought for equality, gain perspective on how these historical struggles resonate today, and participate in preserving stories that traditional education often overlooks. The tour connects the past to the present through storytelling, reflection, and engagement, ensuring these vital narratives inspire future generations. All proceeds go to enhancing A Few Good MENtors, Inc.

Career Foundations Webinar Series

• Dates: Thursday’s in June (6/19, 6/26)

• Time: 7:00-8:00 PM ET

• Format: Virtual with interactive components

Our June webinar series provides essential career navigation tools for new professionals and those supporting them. Each session focuses on a critical aspect of early career development and includes practical tools, expert insights, and peer discussion. Why attend? These sessions transform theoretical career advice into actionable strategies, addressing the real challenges new professionals face. Participants receive downloadable resources to implement what they've learned, and each session includes dedicated Q&A time with experienced industry leaders. The series culminates with a virtual networking event connecting participants with potential mentors and peers facing similar transitions.

If interested in one or both of these weninars fill out the below form:
https://afgmentoring.dm.networkforgood.com/forms/contact-us

• June 19: Managing Up: Working Effectively with Your Boss

• June 26: Creating Your Professional Development Plan

Until next Tuesday – stay curious, be kind, and remember that some of your most valuable contributions might come from helping someone else translate their education into impact.

~ Michael