The Aspire Foundation seeks to make a difference to women suffering from injustice in countries within Africa, Asia and the Middle East through mentoring and coaching programmes for women working in charities, social enterprises and community projects in these locations. (Pictured: S
Aspire is an internationally-recognised and award-winning leader in coaching, leadership education, events and research related to women as business, diversity and social leaders. The organisation was founded in 2001 by Dr. Samantha Collins, winner of The Women’s Social Leadership Award 2010 and voted one of the top ten coaches by The Independent.
Dr Samantha Collins told ReConnect Africa Magazine that the Foundation was established in November 2009 after watching a programme on CNN about pregnant women in Afghanistan who were struggling to get to the birthing clinic.
I felt powerless and wanted to make a difference. I wanted to harness the power of the Aspire women 50 000 women who want to make a difference. I came up with the idea of business mentoring women in non-profit organisations that benefit women and children in Africa and around the world.
She said she chose coaching and mentoring because I think that it’s the key to change, the catalyst to change.
Only by empowering people to create their own change does change really happen. Forcing or telling people to do something doesn’t make change sustainable. Being a coach and running a coaching business, this is something that I strongly believe.
A mentor for me is often a more senior trusted advisor who will share their stories, ideas and experience about what has worked for them. This is how our mentoring programme works.
Professional women communicate once a month by phone or face to face to share their stories.
It’s more of a telling approach. Coaching is more about drawing answers from a person without sharing your own story. I may make suggestions but I wouldn’t tell or advise as such, she said.
Not for profit organisations are making a direct impact on the lives of women and girls.
Our professional coaches offer pro bono coaching to direct beneficiaries on the ground women who are taking leadership positions in their communities. Access to phones and the internet makes the programme feasible without having to directly travel to those countries.
She said the number one quality of selecting a mentor was passion.
At Aspire that is the kind of person we tend to attract anyway. Over and above that, someone very well trained and accredited who has been coaching for at least three years and is good at what they do, in fact fantastic.
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