How did your mentor gain their experience/expertise?
My mentor/father first gained his expertise from studying at various universities. As I mentioned previously, my father received his Master of Business Administration major in Finance and Bachelor of Commerce in International Business and Marketing from McGill University. After acquiring his degrees, my father kept gaining experience in various jobs where he managed shipments and finances for large companies like Sonoco and Noranda. With my father’s background experience in financing, he became the Campus President at The Art Institute of Vancouver for over six years. During his time at AI, he turned their negative $1.6 million EBIT into $30 million in revenue by 2008. Tom then worked in business roles for Northcentral University and Southpointe Academy until moving to a longer-lasting job at Fraser Health as the Board Director, Aboriginal Health Steering Committee Member, Chair of Finance Committee, Chair of CEO Review Committee, and Chair of Digital Health Committee. Tom’s main work related to finances was to govern and deliver improvements in service, quality, and efficiency for Fraser Health’s 1.9 million people and an annual budget of $3.6 billion with 29,000 employees.

What were those experiences like for your mentor?
With every experience, my father learned something new about his passions and the business world. During his time at AI, Tom learned that managing school assets and financials were not where his passions lay. Instead, he found working with people in their lives was more meaningful and fulfilling. At Fraser Health, my father worked as the Aboriginal Health Steering Committee Member. This job had him talk with First Nations Chiefs and people to improve healthcare for First Nations and include more Indigenous people in Fraser Health. Eventually, his passion to improve the quality of life for others led him to teach in the Vancouver area. Without going through each of these experiences, Tom may not have found his true passion for helping others and may not have ended up the same as he is today.

What wisdom have you gained from your mentor so far?
Learning business with my father has taught me a great deal about the complex entities working to keep our society afloat. Before, I thought money circulated from individuals, businesses, and companies without a clear starting point. However, I recently discovered that the federal government of each country dictates how much money will be introduced to their economy each year. Each session with my father has taught me something new about global and Canadian economics. I now realize that my knowledge still has many holes, and it will require serious dedication and time to fill each one.

What have you learned so far, in terms of facilitation strategies, that might contribute to your development as a mentor?
When spending time with my mentor, I have learned that engaging the student in the lesson is one of the most critical aspects of teaching. Over the few sessions we have already done, my father has always kept me engaged by asking questions related to the subject matter. In our most recent lesson, my father ensured that I understood the concept of time deposits and their relevance to the stock market by asking for my opinions. If I became a mentor, I would similarly engage my students because students are more likely to understand a subject it’s something they are interested in.

Report on any progress and sub-skills learned so far. Share photos, videos, and sound recordings where applicable.
So far, I have learned about money, factors that affect the stock market, and investment methods. Money is anything accepted as payment for goods and services. However, money should also be scarce, durable, portable, and divisible. If a country’s currency is not scarce enough, its value might decrease or cease entirely. When money cannot meet all of these criteria, the economy will fail and society will change altogether.

Investing money in stocks can be seen as gambling because you might lose or gain money based on the company you invested in. Oppositely, there is another way of investing called time deposits that guarantee a full return of the investment. Time deposits are similar to short-term contracts. The deal has the investor leave their money in a bank for a specified period. In return, the bank pays them a percentage of their money or interest rate. For example, an investor places $1000 in a time deposit for one year. He will receive 1% (the interest rate) of his money back at the end of his contract. When he pulls out his money he gets $1010 after one year. Both ways of investment require putting in money to a financial institution. They also impact each other severely because if more people move towards time deposits, the stock market loses more investors and the other way around.