40x40
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Spread the word, share how you’ll devote your 40 minutes, and encourage your friends to do the same.
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Spread the word, share how you’ll devote your 40 minutes, and encourage your friends to do the same.
A special message from Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, on her 40th birthday.
In reflecting on my 40th birthday and the many things I am grateful for, I’m struck that TIME IS AMONG OUR GREATEST AND MOST ESSENTIAL GIFTS: Time with our loved ones, time doing the things we love, time spent learning, laughing, growing, and the sacred time we have on this earth. Amongst the most valuable gifts of time is also time spent in service to others knowing that it can contribute to incredible change. To that last point, and with my 40th lap around the sun in mind, it made me wonder: what would happen if we all committed 40 minutes to helping someone else or to mentoring someone in need? And then what would happen if we asked our friends to do the same?
In the past two years, and in large part because of the COVID-19 pandemic, TENS OF MILLIONS OF women around the world have left the workforce, including over two million women in the U.S. So many of these women are also SHOULDERING THE BRUNT OF THE CRISIS when it comes to unpaid labor, including schooling and caring for family members. And the latest research shows that FEWER WOMEN THAN MEN WILL REGAIN WORK as we recover from the pandemic.
I believe mentorship is one way to help women regain confidence and rebuild their economic strength, and for my birthday, I have asked 40 friends, activists, athletes, artists, and world leaders to help kickoff a global effort by contributing 40 MINUTES OF MENTORSHIP to support women re-entering the workforce. With this time, I hope they each help someone advance a professional life on her own terms, and, I hope that they inspire countless others to give 40 minutes of their time as well.
If you are able, please JOIN US and pledge 40 minutes today in service of others in the way that feels right to you. The time that you donate can contribute to a GLOBAL WAVE OF SERVICE and set in motion meaningful impact in our own communities, and across the world.
Let’s spread the 40x40 message and help unleash a wave of mentorship and service.
You can do so much with 40 minutes! Whether it’s mentorship or giving back to another issue you care about, tell us about how you’ll devote your time.
The Duchess of Sussex believes that mentorship is one of many important ways to support women reentering the workforce.
A mentorship relationship can take on many forms, but ultimately works to motivate, inspire, and support a mentee; helping her with the confidence and practical tools she needs to achieve a professional goal. Many mentorship organizations offer opportunities to sign up and get involved, including three partners of 40x40: Smart Works, YWCA, and L.A. Works.
Mentorship can take many forms, but ultimately, a mentor is a person interested in helping someone else with a career or a life goal. They offer support by making themselves available to listen, share their experience, give advice, advocate for their mentee, and connect them with people and resources.
A mentor can help see the larger picture. In the midst of working towards a goal, it can be difficult to identify smaller steps, strategic decisions, or areas where a different approach might be necessary. A mentor can offer that perspective, as well as provide the encouragement and guidance a mentee needs to keep moving forward. Mentorship helps shape the larger course of a career.
There are many organizations dedicated to mentorship, including a number that The Duke and Duchess work with such as Smart Works, YWCA, and L.A. Works. Other organizations, like companies, non-profits, schools, or sports teams also often have opportunities for mentorship. You can also look within your community. A mentor relationship can begin when time is offered to a neighbor, colleague, teammate or friend.
You can reach out to an organization with a mission of matching mentors and mentees, like the U.K.’s Smart Works, which specializes in helping women apply for jobs. Or, take a look at those in your personal and professional network who might be willing to share their experience. It’s also important to consider people beyond your immediate circle. Who is doing something that you aspire to do? Would they be willing to share their experience with you?
But we’re mindful of screen time. Why not take a break? We’ll be here.
