Why Recent Mentor Moments on Campus Mean So Much to Me

Last Thursday was surreal.

Professor David Strauss , the University of Chicago Law School legend famous for arguing 19 cases before the Supreme Court and receiving the Graduating Students’ Award for teaching excellence 6 times, was clearing up his papers so I could speak before a room full of students.

I love it when alums come back, he said casually, picking up the seating charts that used to terrify us as we waited to be called on in class. Looks different from the front of the room, doesn't it? He said it with an easy smile, and as he nodded with his chin for me to take the podium, my mind flew back in time.

Back to when my friends and I gathered in the same Classroom 3 and more professors like Elena Kagan , Cass Sunstein and Judge Frank Easterbrook , along with first-year lecturer Barack Obama, expanded our minds with a single sentence and leveled us entirely with a steady gaze.

We sat in those seats, enormous coffees in hand and futures ahead, and I remember desperately wanting to be worthy of such scholars. Those early mentor moments imprinted themselves on us, and as I cleared my throat and started speaking more than 30 years later, I found I still wanted to make them proud.

The night before I had the similar privilege to speak with undergraduate students at 美国哥伦比亚大学 , and the feeling was the same. Asked to address entrepreneurship, early networking and the importance of mentorship, I was awed by the students' comments and impressed by how fast the evening flew.

Why do mentor moments on campus bring me so much joy?

Why do I immediately start to smile when I walk into a classroom, or feel waves of nostalgia hearing the hum of students as they settle expectantly into seats?

Perhaps it stems from the fact that so many of my happiest moments occurred in college and law school. Maybe it's because I can recall being surrounded by my closest friends, who remain some of the brightest minds in the law to this day, and thinking I would never laugh harder or think more broadly than I did then. Or, it could just be that because we meet a number of our first mentors in academic settings, their impact feels formative forever.

On both days last week, I fielded questions from students that made me smile even more:

What was your favorite part about being a lawyer, and what made you pivot to found être? Why did you make it a B-corp instead of a non-profit? Who was your first mentor and how did you find them? When did you know you had something unique and what distinguishes your company from others today? What's one thing you should never ask a mentor? Do you have a favorite memory from this school?

I do, I wanted to say, and this might be it.

Yes, it was surreal to stand in Classroom 3 and talk about mentor connections and navigating startup networks. And when we walked down the hallway where grades used to be posted and I mentioned it to a student, she looked at me with disbelief and then paled visibly. Time has certainly passed, but in other ways it is standing still.

What remains constant? The fact that mentor moments on campus matter, and the more of them students can amass, the better.

I loved giving these two lectures back to back and can't wait for more in the coming year. Whether talking to freshmen or seniors, startup clubs or graduate students eyeing the workforce, the connections formed thrill me.

Look through my LinkedIn, I urge them repeatedly, and if I can make early intros for you I will. I'll always tell you if I can't, but connecting people is one of my absolute favorite things to do.

I mean it every time.

Connection is key - on campus and everywhere in the workplace. Thank you to the University of Chicago Law School and to 美国哥伦比亚大学 for having me - I cannot wait to come back.

Looking forward,

Illana

êXTRAS: Three more memories from last week's visits you won't want to miss: a link to the other Columbia University 2024 CUSP Speakers and their topics ; a link to the University of Chicago Annual Stout Luncheon Speakers ; and some of the newest attractions found in Hyde Park - it was fantastic to be back and explore!