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Industry Leaders Share Their Most Embarrassing Mistakes, For Charity

Sharing their wisdom for girls in Myanmar.
Dr Susan Carland said she is grateful to generous mentors in her life.
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Dr Susan Carland said she is grateful to generous mentors in her life.

Australian industry leaders will go under the hammer to donate mentoring sessions to raise money for girls' education in Myanmar.

The fund's online MentorMe charity auction, which got underway on Wednesday, will include industry heavyweights such as Australian Rugby Union CEO Bill Pulver, author, academic and social commentator Dr Susan Carland, and CEO of PepsiCo Robbert Rietbroek.

Carland told The Huffington Post Australia she's looking at the mentor program as a chance to share her mistakes.

"To tell them, 'When I was in this situation I did this, and it was a really bad idea'," she said.

"If you can save someone the pain of making the same mistake you did, that's a good thing."

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Carland said she had generous, but informal, mentors during her life journey.

"I've been so grateful to them, so I guess it's that feeling of wanting to pay it forward, because I know what a difference it made for me" she said.

Afterpay's Nick Molnar, one of the 11 whose time is up for auction, said his career has been the richer for having great mentors and advisers supporting him in his journey.

"As Australians, we're so fortunate to have the opportunity to follow our chosen paths to success, and have access to fantastic mentors for guidance and advice," Molnar said in a statement.

"I love the idea that through ChildFund's MentorMe initiative, I can not only pay it forward to my peers here in Australia but also give this opportunity to girls in Myanmar to equip them with the knowledge and skills to create a better future for themselves."

ChildFund Australia CEO Nigel Spence said the ChildFund's goal for the campaign is to raise $100,000 to help 400 girls in Myanmar access a two-year program which will develop their leadership and life skills, as well as their support networks.

Robbert Rietbroek, CEO of PepsiCo Australia, will auction off his time as part of the mentoring program
Fairfax
Robbert Rietbroek, CEO of PepsiCo Australia, will auction off his time as part of the mentoring program

The program run by ChildFund in part supports after school programs taking in a two-year curriculum focusing on the empowerment of young girls and the importance of life choices.

Subjects are centered around self-esteem, respect, finance management, sexual health, sport development, trafficking, labour exploitation and self expression.

"For us it felt like a nice parallel between our aid work overseas and the mentoring experience over here," Spence said when asked why ChildFund chose mentoring as the theme for its fundraiser.

All proceeds from the MentorMe auction will support ChildFund's leadership and life-skills program for girls in Myanmar to address significant issues of poverty, exploitation and gender inequality. Winners will have the opportunity to sit down with their chosen mentor for an hour of expert guidance and career advice.

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