In its fifth year, UNSW Business School's Career Mentoring Program is still changing lives and inspiring a new generation of business leaders. The program, proudly sponsored by CPA Australia, came to another close last Wednesday and brought together mentors and mentees for a night of reflection and celebration.

Chris Styles, Dean of UNSW Business School, interviewed mentor/mentee pairs asking them to describe the mentorship journey. For mentee Romilla Mohan, the journey was one of simplicity.

"Simplicity is a key aspect of life," Mohan remarked. "One of the important things Milton [my mentor] taught me was as important as tech skills are, as you go through your career you need communication skills to share your results and ideas. In a technical field like ours [Actuarial Studies] complexity needs to be simplified."

With such an incisive takeaway, it was no surprise that Mohan's mentor, Milton Lim, was awarded the Mentor of the Year award. "Being a mentor was a great experience," Lim noted upon acceptance of the award. "It was a great opportunity to learn about communication. Romilla wasn't the only one growing from this experience."

As the evening's ceremonies came to a close, Alex Malley (Bachelor of Commerce and master of Commerce, UNSW​), Chief Executive, CPA Australia, offered up an inspiring keynote address. Known as 'The Naked CEO', for his candour and honesty, Malley provided mentees with advice and tales of lessons learned.

"Insights can come from unqualified people," Malley explained. "Opportunities are all around you. Don't shut yourself off." 

Some of Malley's best advice stemmed from his own failures. "Never live with fear or embarrassment. I failed at my first job because I walked away. I didn't have the courage to make mistakes. I never did that again. Always stretch yourself. Always look for more. There's nothing you can't do."

Malley, a strong supporter of mentorship, encouraged mentees to remember their mentoring experiences and to give back when the time is right. "Life is a long game. As you go, you'll turn your experiences into lessons. Those lessons may help others, so share them. Come back to UNSW when it's right and give back."

Malley ended his speech by reminding students the end game isn't always the prize. "The journey can be more fun than the destination. You'll swim in pools of mud and honey. Honey may be sweet but mud is where the adventure happens."

For more information on Alex Malley and The Naked CEO visit  thenakedceo.com ​