Roxanne Reeves

Business adviser, Business leader, Business mentor, Change Agent, Concerned citizen, Connector, Consultant, Educator/Teacher, Entrepreneur, Foodie, Idea generator, World traveler, Writer/Editor

I am the "Accidental" doctor. I am this person because of the unlimited power of mentorship. My passion for mentorship has been driven by my direct experience with stigma and learning disabilities. I had painstakingly concealed literacy and learning disabilities into my thirties. Ashamed, I was walking to quit my undergrad program for the 4th time — this time as an adult — but an accidental meeting and a chance conversation with a woman who becomes my future mentor and at the time worked at the university’s Learning Disability Centre changed my life. She asked me about myself, and with an unexpected and revealing candour, I said I was “stupid and an utter failure”; she told me why I wasn’t. I had never admitted that out loud before: “I am stupid!” It’s how I felt. But because of that accidental meeting, I didn’t quit that day. Instead, I was soon tested for and diagnosed with learning disabilities. That accidental meeting altered my life in so many ways. I had been seconds away from not only quitting university for the umpteenth time but also potentially becoming the ‘failed first lady’… Oh, did I mention that I’m from a political family? My husband is a former Canadian premier, and at that moment we were living a very public life. That accidental meeting and unexpectedly frank conversation saved me from a potentially rather public ass whooping. Ultimately, being diagnosed began to de-shamed and demystified what was wrong with me. It was only then that I was able to quiet the devil that lived on my shoulder and that I began to get a handle on the shame storms I used to unleash on myself. I started, for the first time in my life, to thrive in a world dominated by letters, pages and books. That accidental meeting changed my life. I love sharing my own mentoring process, tips and tools to help you get insanely ready to take action. While I now have a PhD after my name, for me, mentored learning, real-life experiential learning and building relationships have been my most valuable resource. In fact, most all of my success worth celebrating are victories hard earned and achieved due to dynamic relationships with mentors. Where could you be with the right mentors?

ME: #Teacher #Speaker #Consultant #Award-WinningResearcher(Mentorship) #Writer #MavHERrick #DiversityChampion #Sister #Wife #Friend #Volunteer #GlobalCitizen #RiskTolerant #PayitForward #AccidentalDoctor #NeuroDiversity #CoffeeEnthusiast #AnimalLover #ProtegeAgency #MenteeAgency #PermissionGranted

Flipping the power structure from the mentor to the mentee will change your life. #ProtegeAgency #MenteeAgency #PermissionGranted This former first lady was almost the “failed first lady” — she had painstakingly concealed literacy and learning disabilities into her thirties. But an accidental meeting with her future mentor would wholly change Roxanne’s life. In this bold and personal talk, Dr. Reeves, the “accidental doctor”, gives powerful advice about how to hack mentoring. Her story, a shared one, challenges how we think about mentorship.