Uplifting Women From Singapore to London: Mentors For Women Inspires Women Through Career and Life

Feminism first established itself by codifying the natural freedom and mutual respect women are all entitled to. In today’s day and age, this right is often measured through its material outcomes: equal pay and equal opportunity among genders. While women have campaigned for equality since the late 1800s, in reality, not enough has changed for women in the workplace, says Diane Faben, founder of Mentors For Women, as she steadily forges her vision to equip women with the capability to empower themselves.

Mentors For Women is a UK-based organization that creates a safe space for women to learn and grow. With over 30 mentors currently available for women to access, they have a wide variety of skills and experiences – both in life and work – distributed between them, and, as a global project, come from all over the world. Mentors For Women is organized to bring women with different needs at different times the individualized support they need and to build a real community where they can share knowledge, dialogue, and achievements with each other. Mentors For Women additionally provides mentor-training services for individuals and organizations as they are committed to giving everybody the opportunity for real change in their lives.

Diane Faben – mother of three, grandmother of two, and woman of much success – has held a lot of responsibility and a lot of knowledge throughout her life. Though experienced and respected in her career of managing services for large corporations and government bodies, she did not start off that way. She left school at 16 with no idea of what she wanted to do. Eventually, she rose through the ranks, gaining trust and respect as she managed multi-million-pound contracts for government bodies and corporations.

When she became a regular attendee of a motivational course, her life changed, “I’ve always put off my desires and ambitions because there’s always something: you have to wait till the children have grown up; until you’ve got the next job; only when you’ve got enough money; or only when the mortgage is paid, and so on. I learned how to access myself and make my dreams happen through self-leadership.” She realized this was a systemic experience when she advised women on their hardships, of not knowing how to be taken seriously and of being condescended to and dismissed.

This life-long ability to instantly connect to others led to her goal for women to accomplish the original dream: to do it all. To be mothers, wives, and successful, respected career women at the same time. “We needed a place for women to find support through a confidential mentor for situations they were experiencing or working toward,” explains Diane. Mentors For Women’s central focus is to find excellent women from diverse backgrounds to cater to everyone’s needs. It was this platform of inclusivity that captivated many of the organization’s mentors to join.

Diversity is incredibly productive, both for women and the workplace as a whole. While other mentorship organizations may have the resources to guide individuals in specific industries and sectors, Mentors For Women understands that people have different needs at different times. For those who feel stuck, whose journey has taken them to unexpected destinations, who want to change paths, who are struggling to see a way forward, who are going through life-changing experiences, who need new skills, or who are struggling to handle parenthood alongside work, Mentors For Women has mentors who have experienced and surpassed these hurdles. With women at different stages of life being present and willing to grow under the same roof, the company also cultivates a community for women to support each other.

With mentors who are doctors, authors, instrumentalists, consultants, and actors, who live in Singapore, Britain, the USA, Sweden, Egypt, Finland, and more, a matching process is implemented to meet mentees where they are at. Mentors provide the ‘Essence of You,’ a short biography describing their skills, the sectors they have worked in, their location, and other details about themselves.

Mentees, in return, put forward what their mentoring needs are and choose three mentors that best align with those needs. Accordingly, three free fifteen-minute mentoring sessions are scheduled between chosen mentors and the mentee to assure mentees the best chance of growth and fulfillment.

As a subscription service, Mentors For Women places women at the center, offering a community that goes beyond solely providing a mentoring service. When subscribers do not require a mentor, they can visit to be inspired by displays of other women’s stories and successes, their art corner that curates and publicizes women artists’ work, and read through their blog. Not only can they read other members’ stories, they can contribute to their own journeys. Diane’s core philosophy is so embedded that even the majority of images she uses on her website are sourced solely from female photographers.

Mentors For Women is currently accepting investments to expand their reach. Diane Faben hopes that one day soon, Mentors For Women will be the essential bridge to womanhood. “I’d like to see parents gift their daughters a subscription on their 18th birthday and say: Darling, have you thought about this? This would be really good for you.” She aims for women to join Mentors For Women for life, and to become the mentors of the future. As a final thought, Diane adds, “My mentors are not here just for the money. Most of them are incredibly successful. For me and for them, it’s about providing women the guidance they need most.”