Social impact

This Year, Resolve To Help Someone Else Reach Their Goals

Last month, we asked a group of students from our nonprofit partner Year Up to share their resolutions, hopes and dreams for the coming year. Year Up is an amazing organization that empowers low income young adults to move from poverty to professional careers in one year. Each student had ambitious yet achievable goals --

2016 Youth Resolutions

We left the meeting inspired by these incredible young people and compelled to find concrete ways to help connect them to economic opportunity. Like many of you, I've been reflecting on the past year and have committed to make 2016 even more meaningful. In the process, I realized that while making my own resolutions may benefit me in the short term- I can have an even greater impact if I resolve to help someone else achieve their goals in 2016.

Research shows that the presence of a caring adult in the life of a child or young adult is often the difference between falling off track or pursuing an education and a career. Yet 16 million young people will reach age 19 without ever having a mentor. This impact is even more profound for students who were not born into opportunity or connected to a network that takes advantage of their extraordinary skills. With a small time commitment, you can be that connection that unlocks their future.

Today at our LinkedIn company meeting, I challenged every employee around the world to commit to volunteering their time as a mentor. Mentoring can be as simple as spending an hour with a young person to answer questions and help them map out a career path. There is no template or timeline, all you need is a desire to help. This year, I hope you will join us and help someone else achieve their career goals. For more information on mentoring or to find additional volunteer opportunities, visit mentor.linkedin.com.