Why did you decide to become a mentor?
I decided to become a mentor because, while I have always been passionate about software engineering, I also wanted to build an identity beyond my nine-to-five role. I wanted to do work that felt meaningful outside of my day-to-day job and gave me the opportunity to help people who are trying to break into or grow within the industry. Mentorship felt like a natural way to do that because it allows me to share what I've learned, while also staying connected to people who are earlier in their careers. What I've found is that mentoring is not just about teaching - it also helps me learn a lot. It keeps me connected to how the industry is evolving, how hiring is changing, and what challenges newer engineers are facing today. More importantly, it has helped me develop the soft skills that become increasingly important as you grow into a more senior engineering role. As a senior engineer, you are expected to mentor others, and doing that well requires patience, empathy, flexibility, and strong communication. Different people learn in different ways, so mentorship has taught me how to adapt my approach, meet people where they are, and explain complex ideas in a way that actually resonates with them.
How did you get your career start?
My career start is actually a very personal and meaningful story. I studied Computer Science at the University of Waterloo, and during undergrad, I completed several internships. By my third internship, however, I had become pretty jaded with the industry. I had gone through a couple of difficult experiences, both academically and professionally, and I was at a point where I was seriously considering leaving software engineering altogether and exploring other career paths. That changed during my internship at DRW, where I met my first real mentor. She took me under her wing and completely changed the way I saw engineering. Through her guidance, encouragement, and example, she helped me fall in love with software engineering all over again. I've stayed in touch with her over the years, and I still credit her with changing the trajectory of my life. Without that mentorship, I genuinely don't think I would be where I am today - and I may have left the industry a long time ago. That experience is also a big part of why mentorship matters so much to me now.
What do mentees usually come to you for?
Mentees usually come to me for a few different reasons, but they tend to fall into three main categories. The first, and probably the most common, is early-career engineers or students who are trying to break into the industry. With these mentees, we usually focus on building a strong foundation for their job search: improving their resume, identifying gaps in their experience, working on personal projects if they don't yet have internships or professional experience, and then preparing for technical interviews. A lot of the work is about helping them become more confident and intentional in how they present themselves. The second category is more experienced engineers who are looking to change jobs. The overall blueprint is similar, but because they already have professional experience, we can usually skip a few of the earlier steps and focus more heavily on interview preparation, strategy, and execution. I help them prepare for coding interviews, system design interviews, behavioural interviews, and the overall job search process. As they move through interviews, I also support them with things like evaluating opportunities, deciding between offers, and negotiating compensation. The third category is people who want to grow within their current roles. They may be aiming for a promotion, trying to navigate workplace challenges, or looking to become more effective communicators and collaborators. With these mentees, the focus is often less on pure technical preparation and more on the soft skills side of career growth: building confidence, handling difficult conversations, communicating impact, understanding expectations at the next level, and learning how to advocate for themselves. Across all three categories, my goal is to meet mentees where they are and create a plan that is specific to their goals, background, and timeline.
What's been your favourite mentorship success story so far?
One of my favourite mentorship stories is from a mentorship that recently wrapped up. The mentee was already a very competent engineer working at one of the top companies in the industry, and they had been there for a few years before deciding that they were ready to move to a new company. We worked together for roughly nine to ten months. This was not a case where I had to help someone start from zero - they had already been preparing for interviews, they were clearly capable, and they had a strong technical foundation. But like many job searches, especially at a senior level, there were bumps along the way. What made this mentorship stand out to me was the resilience and grit this engineer showed throughout the process. One thing I always tell people is that once you are already working in the industry, life does not stop just because you are interviewing. You usually cannot spend seven hours a day preparing in a perfectly controlled environment. You still have a full-time job, errands to run, meals to cook, bills to pay, relationships to maintain, and responsibilities outside of work. Balancing all of that while preparing for interviews can be incredibly difficult. With this mentee, some weeks were very strong. They would complete the goals we had set together, stay consistent with prep, and make visible progress. Other weeks were harder, and that is very normal. But what I admired most was that they stayed committed throughout the process. They kept showing up, kept adjusting, and kept moving forward even when things were not perfectly linear. That experience reminded me that, beyond technical ability, resilience is often what gets people across the finish line. Two engineers can be equally talented and equally prepared, but the one who is able to keep going through a long and uncertain interview process often has the edge. I learned a lot from that mentee about persistence, discipline, and grit, and that is why this story has stayed with me.
What are you getting out of being a mentor?
I have learned so much from being a mentor. One of the most interesting parts of mentorship is that it teaches you a lot about human behaviour. In some ways, being a mentor feels like observing several parallel case studies at once: different people respond differently to pressure, uncertainty, setbacks, and opportunity. Some mentees come in extremely enthusiastic, but after a few months of navigating a difficult job market, they may realize they need to pause, pivot, or reassess their goals. Others come in with that same enthusiasm and somehow manage to sustain it consistently throughout a long and challenging process. Watching those differences has been incredibly insightful. A lot of the time, mentorship is also deeply inspiring. I learn so much from my mentees, and one of the biggest lessons they have taught me is how resilient people can be. I have seen mentees continue to show up on difficult days, keep working through discouragement, and keep attacking the same problem from different angles until something finally starts to click. That level of grit has had a real impact on me. It has reminded me that progress is often not about having a perfect plan or perfect conditions - it is about continuing to move forward, even when the process is slow, frustrating, or uncertain. Mentorship has also helped me build soft skills that are essential as you grow in your career. It requires patience, empathy, adaptability, and the ability to meet people where they are. Different people learn in different ways, and part of being an effective mentor is learning how to explain the same concept in multiple ways until it resonates. It has also made me much more grateful for the privileges and opportunities I have had in my own career. There are things that can be easy to take for granted, such as having work authorization in the country where you are applying for jobs, that can make a world of difference for someone else. I have seen incredibly competent engineers miss out on opportunities because of factors outside their control, and that has made me more thoughtful and appreciative. Overall, mentorship has made me a better communicator, a more patient teacher, and a more empathetic engineer.
